


DETERMINATION

by Enraged_Erin



Series: Eternal Souls [1]
Category: Eden Eternal (Video Game), Free Realms (Video Game), Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Underfell, Alternate Universe - Underlust, Entire Undertale Crew, Other, a lot of OCs - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-11
Updated: 2017-01-28
Packaged: 2018-09-07 19:30:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 33
Words: 78,166
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8813413
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Enraged_Erin/pseuds/Enraged_Erin
Summary: When a simple girl meets a monster in a bar, she learns about the plight of the monster kind and sets forth to put an end to their pain. What starts as an unfortunate attack grows into a battle to preserve all timelines and all universes. Will she be able to save the structure of time and space, and stop a racist faction of humans from harming monsters, or will she fail?





	1. Introductions

 

 Monsters have been living on the surface for a little over a year now, humans still have trouble adjusting to the sight of monsters co-existing with them. There was one human that treated monsters like every day strangers she would see on the sidewalk. Her name was Zerrus Teknianu and all she wanted was for humans to treat the monsters as an equal. Flipping over the next page of the newspaper, she scowled deeply as she read the headline. "Monster Attacks Grow More Frequent... dammit all. Why won't those bastards just leave those poor souls alone?" Zerrus grumbled to herself

  
 She rolled up the newspaper and set it down on the table to her right. She crossed her legs while waiting for the owner to call for her to come back into their office. She readjusted her black flatcap and crossed her arms over her chest, closing her eyes to lose herself in her thoughts. Zerrus couldn't figure out why humans still act the way they do to monsters. They apologized for their past actions, wasn't that enough? "Teknianu?" called the secretary behind his desk. Zerrus stood up from the uncomfortabe chair and strolled over to the desk. "I'm sorry, but we don't help your kind here."

  
 "My kind? What do you mean?" Zerrus blunk twice at the confusing remark directed at her.

  
 "Let me say it more clearly: we don't treat monsters." She scoffed at his response and crossed her arms. Zerrus was very irritated at the assumption of her race just because of her appearance. Refusing to leave, Zerrus stood her ground. "You can go."

  
 "Sir, with all due respect, I am NOT a monster. I'm a human!"

  
 "Psh! Human... right..." The secretary snapped his fingers and two security guards grabbed her arms. "Get this cretin out of here." Zerrus strained to break free from the guards' grip, being thrown into the concrete outside the building.

  
 "Don't come around here again, you freak." warned one of the guards as they slammed the door shut behind them. Zerrus scooped up her hat, dusting it off and brushing aside a strand of deep blue hair that had fallen in front of her cherry red eyes. She growled under her breath as she pushed herself up to her feet, glaring back at the building.

  
 "Stupid shitheads..." Zerrus scowled as she turned to walk back to her house that was a few blocks away. She passed by a bar she had never seen before. Zerrus hummed quietly as she contemplated going inside or not. The neon lights on the sign read "New Grillby's" suggesting to her that the owner of the establishment was a monster, no doubt a fire type. "Ehh... I ain't got anything better to do. May as well check it out."

  
 She pushed open the door with a small bell dinging. At least a dozen monsters turned and looked at her. Zerrus noticed that there wasn't a single human inside the bar, realizing the fact that it was definitely a monster bar. She shifted nervously as she approached the counter, a flame monster putting up glasses on the shelf behind him. He turned and looked at her, the flames sparking just slightly. "Oh? A human customer? What can I get you?" he asked, a softspoken, cheery, and rather polite tone in his voice.

  
 Zerrus looked up at him, his height was a bit startling to her since she was kinda petite. She cocked her head at him and shrugged. "I don't know what exactly you serve here." she responded, her voice cracking slightly. Zerrus heard the bell ring, causing her to turn around to see who had walked in. Her eyes immediately locked on to a short skeleton wearing a pale blue hoodie with a fur lining, black gym pants, and a pair of fuzzy pink slippers.

  
 Zerrus held back a giggle as he strode right by her and sat down on one of the bar stools. She stood completely still as every monster greeted the small skeleton in glee. "Heya Sans!" yelled one of the monsters. Zerrus trailed her eyes to the small skeleton, he casually waved at everyone. He noticed Zerrus standing there and the grin on his face hitched up higher.

  
 "haven't seen you before." he spoke, gesturing for her to take a seat next to him. She flinched slightly, unsure of why she held a moment of fear at his motions, and cautiously climbed up on the stool. PpppPPFffffFFFFttTTt... Zerrus's face flushed over as she sat down, the skeleton burst into laughter. "best reaction i've seen so far!"

  
 He jostled her shoulder a bit, her face burning with rage and embarrassment in the moment. She cleared her throat and looked up at him, her left eye flashed a spark of blue magic. He stalled for a moment to take in her appearance in full. Pixie cut styled dark blue hair, big cherry red eyes, the left eye has a target reticle shaped pupil, and metal plating surrounding her ears. She was wearing a denim jacket, black undershirt, and a pair of denim jeans. Her shoes were clearly worn after years of work, dirt and scuff marks decorated them as proof.

  
 Zerrus grumbled a bit as he continued to stare at her. "Did you put a whoopie cushion in the seat?" He held back a chuckle as she turned her head to look at him. "Cause if you did... That. Was. Hilarious." Zerrus smiled and pat his back lightly. "Normally I would be really pissed off at somebody pranking me, but I'm only slightly irritated. To be honest, it lifted up my mood a bit."

  
 "having a bad day?"

  
 "Psh... tell me about it. Could be worse I suppose." Zerrus rest her arms on the counter and decided to lay her head down. "I just wish people would open their damn eyes and accept us for who we are, not what we look like."

  
 She sat up and looked up to the ceiling, the smell of the food was unusual to her but appealing at the same time. Her stomach growled a bit, causing Sans to look over to her. "hungry?" Zerrus danced her head to the left and right, shrugging at his question.

  
 "Rather not bug ya. Just came in here to see what it was like in here. I kinda like it. Makes me feel at ease."

  
 "hey grillbz, the usual for me and a burg for my new pal here." Sans called over to the fire monster. He nodded and walked through the door that read 'Fire Door'. "so... people treat you badly just cause of what you look like?"

  
 "Who can blame them? I mean, I can barely even identify as a human to the naked eye. But, how is it that you guys knew I was a human on first glance?" Sans's eyes were what she would expect except for the pinpricks of light, which almost pulsed as he looked back at her.

  
 "just a hunch really. us monsters have a sort of sixth sense that you humans don't have." Zerrus perked up as he started to explain how he knew she was a human. Grillby, as she had learned, came out from the door holding a plate with a burger and a bottle of ketchup. He set the plate in front of Zerrus and the bottle in front of Sans. Sans twisted off the cap and aimed the bottle towards her. "want some?"

  
 Zerrus shook her head then watched as Sans drank the ketchup right from the bottle. She was flabbergasted at the sight of a skeleton DRINKING ketchup. Zerrus was used to ketchup only being used as a condiment, never as a beverage. She took a small bite from the burger and smirked. Zerrus hadn't had a good tasting burger in years, it had become so rare to her to find one that tasted remotely good.

  
 Zerrus and Sans had a nice friendly conversation as they ate when her phone vibrated in her pocket. She held up a finger and pulled her phone out, looking at the screen to see what it was. Zerrus's eyes widened as she read the text that practically burned on to her screen.

  
XXX-XXXX  
bastard child

  
 She growled under her breath as she dug out a twenty dollar bill and placed it on the counter, storming out with a huff. She turned the corner and leaned against the wall of the alley just beside the bar. Zerrus slid down against the wall, her entire body shaking with rage. She snarled loudly and punched the brick wall of the neighboring building as hard as she could, not even caring that she may as well have broken her knuckles.

  
 Zerrus huffed as she heard footsteps shuffle nearby, slowly getting closer to her. She hastily looked over, her left eye flashing blue again as she scanned the area where the footsteps were coming from. A man wearing a black leather jacket and dark blue jeans stepped out from the shadows. A menacing smile drew across his face as he stepped closer to her. "Well well, what do we have here? A lost little kitty?" cackled the stranger. Zerrus went to ball up her fists when she winced in pain from having punched a solid brick wall just a few moments ago. "Aww, did the poor little kitten hurt her paw?"

  
 "Back off!" Zerrus screamed, shifting her stance into a combat-ready one. The man laughed at her attempt to make herself look more threatening, enraging her even more. He took another step forward, triggering Zerrus into a full blown attack. She swung at him, her fist connecting with his jaw. He staggered backwards and spat out a bloody tooth.  
 "Heh heh. Looks like you got quite a bit of fight in ya. Shoulda expected that from a monster." Zerrus growled even louder, lunging at him to strike him again. He grabbed her arm and threw her to the side, Zerrus smacking into the wall. The wind was knocked out of her, but she stood right back up and wiped a small trail of blood from the side of her mouth.

  
 Zerrus was now concerned as he drew a switchblade from his jacket pocket. Knowing that she was unarmed, she glanced around to see if there was anything she could use as an impromptu weapon to defend herself. She spotted a pipe near a dumpster, she grinned. Sprinting past the man, she dove at the pipe and rolled to her feet. The stranger grunted as he lunged at her with the switchblade.

  
 Zerrus swung the pipe and it struck his hand, knocking the knife out of his grip. He groaned as he rubbed at his hand, glaring at Zerrus. She tapped the pipe against her shoulder and shot an ice melting stare at him. "I'll give you one chance here. Either you leave now, or I'll make you regret trying to fight me." Zerrus threatened, waving the pipe at him.

  
 He coughed once and turned away from her. Letting her guard down, she lowered the pipe and went to toss it back to the dumpster. Zerrus was pushed into the asphalt, the man pinning her. The look in his eyes made Zerrus start to panic. She rolled over, throwing him off of her. Jumping back to her feet, Zerrus went to run out of the alley when the man grabbed her in a choke hold. He held the switchblade in front of her face, the light from the lightposts bouncing off the blade.

  
 Zerrus watched in fear as he drew the knife closer to her throat. "I'll give YOU one last chance. Do what I say..." he pressed the knife against her neck, blood trickling down. "or ya die."

  
 Sweat beaded up on her forehead, her eye burning as the light shone ferociously. Zerrus yelled and managed to elbow him in the stomach. Scrambling to run away, she cried out in agony as he drove the blade into her side. Taking a moment to ignore the pain, she turned around and kicked at him. The knife dug even further into her body, tears beginning to well up in her eyes. Her entire body was enveloped in a blue light as he attempted to walk back to her.

  
 "What the hell?!" The man covered his eyes as the light blinded him. Zerrus tore the blade from her body and gripped the handle. She flipped the knife around and swung at him, knicking his shirt. A thin trail of blood began to appear, Zerrus's face remained emotionless as she watched the man start to tremble.

  
 She took a step towards him, fear took over his body as he bolted out of the alley. Zerrus groaned and fell down to one knee, clutching her side and letting the knife fall from her hand. She watched in surprise as the blood began to pool around her. Realizing just how badly wounded she was, Zerrus pressed against the wall and guided herself back to the entrance of the bar.

  
 She limped forward, each step sending a wave of pain up her back. She found the door handle and managed to push it open, the bell ringing and drawing everyone's attention over to her. Eyes widened in shock at her bloody form, slouched over and breathing heavily. "C-Could someone help me?" Zerrus muttered, as her knees shook. Sans jumped off of the bar stool and ran over to her, slinging an arm around her and bringing her arm around him. She shakily pointed towards the urgent care center that was nearby.

  
 Sans nodded and helped guide her to the building, the two security guards from earlier scowled. "I thought we made it clear we don't treat your kind here!" barked one of the guards. Sans bit back a 'tsk' and glared at them with hollowed eyes. The guards froze and looked at each other, then over to Zerrus. They gulped hard as she too was glaring at them, her red eyes starting to look like two red foggy glass bulbs.

  
 "Are you really... going to put up a fight?" she coughed out, her knees buckling further. Sans hoisted her back up and took a quick look-over of her injuries. "C-Can't you see... I'm bleeding out ov-over here?"

  
 One of the guards rushed over and looked at her face as the color drained. "Monsters don't bleed dude. We better get her in." responded the second guard. Zerrus smiled slightly at the acknowledgement. Sans and the security guard stood on both sides of her, rushing her inside as fast as they could without hurting her too much. Each step sent spikes of pain through her limbs. One pain spike was sharp enough that it caused her to black out, her mind completely fading out every sound and her vision.

 Zerrus slowly opened her eyes, the sound of machines beeping and the IV drip roused her from her drug induced sleep. She scanned her surroundings trying to compose herself. On the other side of the room was Sans, he was sitting in one of the chairs, asleep. A second skeleton, much taller than Sans, was sitting next to him. Their eyes were practically glued to Zerrus. She froze up, gripping the warm hospital blankets that covered her.

  
 The taller skeleton nudged Sans, tearing him from his sleep. "SANS! THE HUMAN IS AWAKE!" his voice echoed. Zerrus flinched as his voice rang in her ears, her head throbbing. She slowly sat up, a burning pain flaring up at her side. She went to rub at her eyes when she noticed her right wrist was wrapped in a bandage wrap. Out of curiosity, Zerrus glanced at her left arm to see the IV was firmly secured to her arm with medical tape.

  
 "How long have I been out?" she mumbled, looking out the window to see the moonlight shining through the curtains.

  
 "roughly 6 hours. how are you holding up?" Sans replied, getting up out of the chair and walking over to Zerrus. She pulled the gown collar away from her chest far enough to allow her to get a good look at the knife wound. She was wrapped tightly enough to keep the gauze placed over the injury with a few layers of bandages.

  
 "As well as one can hold up after having their ass kicked halfway to hell." Zerrus glanced over to the taller skeleton and cocked her head. Sans looked over to where she was looking at and chuckled.

  
 "that's my bro. i called him after they took you back to treat your injuries."

  
 "I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, FEEL TERRIBLE FOR NOT BEING THERE IN YOUR TIME OF NEED." spoke the skeleton with a sad tone barely coating his cheery voice. "BUT FEAR NOT, MISS... UM..." Papyrus grabbed the chart at the foot of her bed and skimmed it. "TEKNIANU! MY BROTHER AND I WILL PROTECT YOU FROM WHOEVER HURT YOU!"

  
 "Feh... wish I knew who it was. Trust me, I wanna find that guy and make him pay in full." Zerrus sneered, sitting up further and crossing her arms as best she could with the tangle of tubes and wires. She looked at her right hand and an irritated frown drew across her face. "I also wanna know who the hell texted me."

  
 "that explains why you stormed out of grillby's. you were happy and far more relaxed than when i first walked in." Sans recalled. Zerrus looked over to the table next to the bed and saw her phone laying there. She reached over and found she had 1 unread message.

  
XXX-XXXX  
reuniting with your extranged daddy or something?

  
 Zerrus's eye flashed a bright blue, red edging the tip of the flame as her face wrinkled in rage. Her left hand balled up nearly crushing her phone. The machine checking her pulse started to beep faster. Zerrus blunk a few times trying to calm herself down, the monitor's beeps slowed to its original speed. "Just... gotta stay calm." she chanted to herself, over and over.

  
 Sans took a quick look at her phone, the text message still on the screen. He sighed and turned off her screen, placing a hand on her shoulder. "don't sweat it. i'm sure your father is a well respected man."

  
 "My dad died 4 years ago." The secretary from earlier stepped into the room after giving two knocks on the door. Zerrus's face scrunched up in discomfort as she recognized him. "Oh...hi."

  
 "H-Hey... sorry about before. It hadn't occured to me that you were just a human with unique properties." he apologized, scratching the back of his head. Zerrus scoffed and crossed her arms. "I understand if you're mad at me. I wasn't acting professionally and kinda took out my frustration on you."

  
 "Ehh... I'll let it slide... I'm not one to hold a grudge. Tell me, when do I get out of here?"

  
 "Well, these two *ahem* guys said that they would help take care of you once you woke up. Your injuries healed up a lot quicker than most patients. And I mean A LOT." He pointed at his own side and shrugged slightly. "When you were brought in here, you were bleeding out. After we put you under to treat the wound, it just closed up on its own! At this rate, it's no more than a huge papercut on your side."

  
 "Then why is it wrapped? Is it still bleeding?"

  
 "Just a bit, not something to be worried about. Just think of it as a band-aid over a scratch. Don't want to be walking around with a red line dotting your shirt, now do you?"  
 "Hmm... nah. Good point. So, I'm free to go?"

  
 "Yeah, but just take it easy." The secretary turned to walk away when he stalled at the doorway and looked back to her. "Oh, I am a bit curious about you, so I'll give you my contact details."

  
 Zerrus went to respond to him when he shut the door. She sighed and swung her legs over the side of the bed. She was surprised to see she was still wearing her jeans, but her shoes were down by the foot of the bed. A nurse walked into the room and started to unhook Zerrus from the monitors. The IV pinched her arm, causing her to wince loudly. "Sorry, pumpkin!" she comforted with a pat on the back. Zerrus waved her hand at the nurse to show her she was okay.

  
 The nurse place a small gauze pad where the IV rest and taped it down. She smiled and walked out of the room, leaving a clean shirt on the bed. Zerrus looked at Sans and Papyrus, expecting them to get the message that she needed them to turn around while she switched the gown for the shirt.

  
 After an exchange of stares, Zerrus huffed and used her right arm to cover her chest while her left hand pulled the gown off. She slipped the scrubs over her head and pulled it down far enough to cover her chest, letting her slip her arms through the sleeves. She slid off the bed and staggered slightly, Sans quick to run to her side and help her stabilize.  
 Zerrus rubbed her temples and her eyes shot open as Papyrus bent down to hug her tightly. "Whoa! HELLO!" she gasped, not expecting the sudden bear hug. Sans chuckled slightly at the sight of her locking up entirely. Papyrus scooped her up and held her.

  
 "DO NOT FORCE YOURSELF! MY BROTHER AND I SHALL TEND TO YOUR INJURIES UNTIL YOU ARE DEEMED HEALED!" Papyrus belted out, pressing Zerrus further into the hold. She grumbled a bit and pushed her boundaries aside to allow the concerned skeleton carry her out of the building.

  
 They arrived in front of a rather comfortable looking home, Zerrus had dozed off in the sleek red mustang during the ride there. She snapped awake when Papyrus scooped her up and carried her into the house. Sans opened the door, Papyrus gently setting Zerrus down on the couch.

  
 She sank down into the cushions, Sans laughed at the sight of Zerrus being consumed by the couch. "sorry you got sucked in to this whole mess." Sans smirked. Zerrus giggled at the obvious pun at her expense. She managed to wiggle herself free, Sans sitting down next to her.

  
 "Hm! Well aren't you a punny guy." Zerrus remarked, crossing her arms and cackling to herself. "By the way, name's Zerrus. Thanks for helping me out earlier."

  
 "ah don't mention it. i may be a monster by race, but i'm not one by nature."

  
 "I can see that, Sans was it?" Sans nodded. "Makes sense then. You're one comic, Sans."


	2. Recuperation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zerrus wakes up in a new friend's home, only to learn that her hereditary traits have altered.

  
 A thick fog impaired Zerrus's vision, causing her to squint to see a sillhouette in the distance. She took a few cautious steps forward, the sound of glass crunching under her feet. Looking down at the ground, Zerrus saw that she was literally standing on nothing but it was clear she had solid ground underneath her. Confused, she knelt down and ran her hand along the non-existant ground. Her hand hit a groove, a shockwave of violet lightning shot through the air around her.

 

 A masculine maniacal laugh boomed behind her, Zerrus wheeling around to see that the sillhouette was now standing directly behind her. She felt pressure pushing down on her neck, cutting off her breath. The shadow pulled her face in front of their eerily glowing eyes, a creepy smile growing on their face. "You are almost ready to tame, my little pet." he cackled, Zerrus tensing up as she felt a familiar burning feeling shoot up her side.

 

 Waking up with a shriek, Zerrus's eyes shot open and sprung upright. She panted as she tried to regain her bearings, her left eye flashing a bright blue. Taking a few heavy breaths, she jumped at the sight of Sans. "DEAR GOD!" she yelped, her breath catching in her throat.

 

 Zerrus froze up when Sans brought a hand down on her shoulder and eased her back on the couch. "just relax, kid." Sans whispered as he draped a damp rag over her forehead. Zerrus shot a perplexed look at him as he dabbed the rag on her face. Reality struck her as she noticed that her clothes were absolutely soaked in sweat.

 

 "What the hell happened?"

 

 "well, you were tossing and turning in your sleep and moaning something i couldn't quite catch." Zerrus watched as Sans withdrew the rag from her face. "as far as i could tell, you were having a bad dream. must've been a really nasty one."

 

 "No kidding..." Zerrus pushed him away from her personal space and sat up on the couch, running her hands through her ruffled hair. Her left eye stopped flashing, returning to a normal red iris. She felt a sort of comfort knowing that someone was nearby.

 

 "you feeling better?"

 

 "Y-yeah... just need some fresh air." Zerrus pushed herself off of the couch and walked over to the back yard. She leaned against the wall taking a deep breath. A gentle  a breeze blew by, her blue hair waving against her cheek. She brushed her hair away from her face and spotted a few fallen apples from a nearby tree.

 

 Zerrus sauntered over to the apples and scooped them up, inspecting them to see how bruised they were from their fall from the treetop. One apple was in great condition, Zerrus chose to carry that one with her and set it on one of the wooden posts. She took a few steps back and stared at the apple. Raising her arm towards the apple, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

 

 A golden cloud of magic swirled around her chest, tiny orbs floating upwards and circling her head. Zerrus opened her eyes and the apple started to shake on the post. She shifted her stance and lunged her hand forward, the apple splitting into even slices. In one swift movement, she manipulated the air around the apple and kept the slices from falling to the ground.

 

 Zerrus sprinted forward and grabbed the apple slices, examining each slice. An irritated grunt escaped her as she noticed the apple was radiating a dangerous amount of magical energy. "Dammit. Still can't control the magic discharge that clings to my target."

 

 She angrily threw the slices back at the tree, surprise drew across her face when the apple reformed to its original shape. The apple smacked the trunk and rolled over to the back door. It gently tapped a pair of fuzzy pink slippers, the owner of the slippers bending over to pick up the apple.

 

Sans stared at the apple and then brought his attention to Zerrus. "that's some sweet magic you got." he admired Zerrus as he continued to examine the apple.

 

 "How long have you been standing there?" Zerrus almost demanded. The apple glistened slightly in his hands, tiny little sparkles dotting the apple and slowly changing its color. The fruit shifted to a cool blue shade, Sans's little lights in his eyes shinning a bit brighter.

 

 "long enough." Sans wiped the apple on his hoodie and looked at it. He opened his mouth, revealing fangs to Zerrus as he attempted to bite at the apple. Zerrus focused her energy and the apple split into even slices again. "heh heh. you're cut from a different thread than others."

 

 Sans bit into one of the slices and his grin widened. She stepped up to him and grabbed one of the slices, turning it over in her hand. A tiny little sparkle fell off the skin and landed on her sleeve. Sans plucked the tiny spark off of her clothing and examined it.

 

 "pure magic. not even the slightest hint of malice." he muttered, flicking the small particle into the air. The particle burst into a rainbow of colors upon lining up with the sun.

 

 "Never seen it do THAT before." Zerrus mumbled to herself, watching the particles rain down on the two of them. The moment the rainbow colored particles landed on their shoulders, Zerrus started to giggle. "Guess I really DO live up to the name..."

 

 Sans went to speak when a familiar voice boomed from inside the house. "SANS? HUMAN? WHERE ARE YOU?"

 

 "we're out here, paps." Sans called out, dusting the particles from his hoodie. Papyrus opened the back door and rushed over to Zerrus, brushing the rainbow specks off of her clothes. He hugged her tightly, lifting her off of her feet.

 

 "Pa! Py! RUS!" Zerrus squealed, wiggling to break free from the bear hug she was trapped in. She finally broke free, rolling to her feet instead of landing flat on her ass. Zerrus cleared her throat and dusted off her jeans. "Thanks for letting me crash here last night."

 

 "OF COURSE, TEKNIANU!" Papyrus responded.

 

 "Whoa whoa! Teknianu sounds wierd to me coming from a friend... call me Zerrus."

 

 "I DIDN'T MEAN TO OFFEND YOU."

 

 "Oh, no no! I wasn't offended!" The sound of a phone ringing distracted Zerrus for a moment, realizing that it was her cell phone. "One moment."

 

 Zerrus ran in to the house and grabbed the phone sitting on the side-table. She answered the phone with a bit of hesitation. Silence. Silence was all she heard after answering the phone. Whoever was on the other end of the call wasn't talking, or maybe butt-dialed her by mistake.

 

 After a minute of complete silence, Zerrus finally cracked. "Hello?"

 

 The sound of cloth rubbing against the microphone on the other side confused Zerrus until a voice squeaked out. "Shit! Sorry 'bout that! I called ya to ask if you were okay, but I got distracted."

 

 "By what?! How the hell do you get distracted not even a minute after calling someone and forget?!"

 

 "Ha ha ha! Neighbor started asking me the same thing I was gonna ask you. What the hell happened to you? You didn't come home last night. It's not like you at all!"

 

 "Yeah... I know, Dat. Just don't worry! I should be home today. I'd rather not explain everything on the line, you know?"

 

 "Actually, not really. Just what are you so afraid of?" Zerrus remained silent, refusing to divulge any information to Dat on the phone. "*sigh* Okay okay. I get the hint. I'll stop bugging you about it. But I expect you to tell me when you get home!"

 

 "Deal. See you later, Dat."

 

 "Bye, Techy." Zerrus hung up the phone and turned to see Sans and Papyrus standing in the doorway. She froze up and remained completely still as the two skeletons stared at her.

 

 "That was my husband... sorry about that." Zerrus explained, shoving her cellphone into her pocket. When she looked back up, Papyrus's eyes were practically gleaming.

"W-what?"

 

 "I DIDN'T KNOW YOU WERE MARRIED! I'M SO HAPPY!" Papyrus squealed, bending down to snuggle against her. Sans chuckled and managed to pull his brother from Zerrus. "YOU SHOULD HEAD HOME! BEST NOT TO MAKE YOUR HUSBAND WORRY TOO MUCH. WHERE DO YOU LIVE?"

 

 "Uhh... well, I think Sans might understand the directions a bit more clearly." Sans stuffed his hands in his pockets and looked at her. "Only three, maybe four blocks away is my house. I didn't bother to drive to the urgent care since I knew it was close by."

 

 "i hope you don't mind me asking... why were you there?" Sans inquired. Zerrus once again remained silent and only stared at him. He laughed quietly and shrugged. "guess i'll find out when we meet your husband."

 

 "Seems only fair. After all, he would want to know who helped save my life. I'm sure he'd be glad to meet you." Zerrus patted her pants to see if she had everything from last night. Looking over to Papyrus, she cleared her throat. "Think we can go now?"

 

 "OF COURSE!" Papyrus responded, grabbing his car keys and motioning for her and Sans to exit first. They both nodded and stood next to the car, waiting for Papyrus.

 

 "Right there." Zerrus pointed to a sky blue house with burgundy shingles. Her husband was sitting on the front porch, staring at the car as they pulled up into the driveway. He had dark green hair and black eyes, his shirt was stained with oil and torn a bit at the hem. His khakis were wrinkled and also stained with oil and dirt, indicating that he had been working on one of the cars. Papyrus parked the car behind a deep blue sports car with a red hood and trunk.

 

 Zerrus casually stepped out of the car only to be caught in a tight hug by her husband. "Don't think I can't smell the blood, Techy." he growled, glaring at the two skeletons that stepped out of the car. "Did they hurt you?"

 

 "No, Dat. In fact, if it weren't for them I would be dead." Zerrus explained gesturing over to Sans and Papyrus. "I'd feel safer if we were inside."

 Once inside the house, Dat sat down on the couch next to Zerrus. He slung an arm over her and motioned for the two skeletons to sit down. Sans sat down on the recliner while Papyrus sat on a stool. After a moment of silence and awkward stares, Dat cleared his throat.

 

 "Okay. Who are you guys and what the hell happened to my wife?" he barked out. Papyrus stiffened up at the sudden change in attitude. Sans remained calm and sighed, leaning over to where his elbows rested on his kneecaps.

 

 "name's sans. sans the skeleton. this is my brother, papyrus." Sans started, Papyrus shyly waves at Dat. "she was badly injured and we took her to the urgent care nearby."

 

 "Honey, it may be best if I start from the beginning. I left the house to head to the urgent care to see the doctor about our situation. They refused to check me in simply due to my appearance." Zerrus interjected, letting Dat know how it all started. He sighed and pulled Zerrus closer to him. "I was on my way home when I passed by a monster bar. I decided to check it out and I met Sans here... After chatting for a while, I got a strange text. Next thing I know, I'm being attacked by some creep."

 

 Dat looked down at the floor and wrung his hands together. "Was it those anti-monster extremists we've been trying to stop?" Zerrus nodded in response. "Bastards... Isn't it bad enough that you monsters have dealt with the abuse humanity has dished out, now they're attacking other humans?"

 

 "I think there's more to us than we originally thought." Zerrus trailed off in thought, staring down at the floor.

 

 "Babe, don't be ridiculous. We're no different-."

 

 "sorry to interrupt, but i think she's right." Sans interrupted Dat, standing up and gesturing to Zerrus. "she was using magic earlier, which is impossible for a human to project."

 Zerrus sighed and pushed herself off of the couch, strolling over to the fruit bowl and grabbing a red apple. She tossed the apple into the air, spinning around and extending her hand outwards. The fruit levitated in the air, then split into even slices. Zerrus closed her hand and the apple changed from a red hue to a cool blue like before.

 

 Sparkles of magical energy rain down on the apple, seemingly washing it with pure magic. Zerrus eased her stance and swept up the apple slices on a paper plate, passing it over to Dat. He stammered, picking up one of the slices and turning it over in his hands. He carefully took a bite of the fruit, his eyes widening at the taste of the apple.

 

 "It doesn't taste like an apple... more like a fruit medley!" Dat remarked savoring the taste. "Kinda like a berry mix really. There's a bit of tingle at each bite. Almost like a soda."

 

 "that's the magic backwash." Sans mentioned while he plucked a slice off of the plate. He ran his hand over the slice and little particles of magic rose off of it. Zerrus held her breath as the speckles of magic floated up. Her eye flashed blue for a moment, the specks bursting away with light.

 

 Rainbow colors danced along the wall, mesmerizing everyone in the room. A  click resonated in the room, Zerrus gasped and the colors drained to a dim grey. She wheeled around and saw the same man she recognized from last night hunched over in the corner, holding a phone. Rage bubbled in Zerrus, the same golden light that encased her before returned.

 

 She shouted out, three of the orbs that floated near her shot out towards the man. One orb smacked the phone out of his hands, shattering it into many pieces. The second orb connected with his stomach, knocking him over and on the floor. The final orb smacked his face, bruising him from the impact.

 

 He hit his head against the wall from the impact of the magical orb, hissing between his teeth. Zerrus lunged forward, pulling him by his shirt collar off of the floor and against the wall, his feet dangling despite Zerrus being a few inches shorter than him. He squirmed in her grip trying to break free when she held her free hand backwards, summoning a larger golden orb.

 

 "If you don't wanna die, you'd better tell me who you are and why you are here." Zerrus threatened, straightening out her hand causing the orb to shudder. The man shook in fear as her red eyes started to glow slightly, her left eye sparking with a blue magic. Dat stepped up behind Zerrus and held up a grimoire, thumbing through the pages.

 "And I will make sure you suffer." Dat growled as his hands started to glow a faint white. The intruder gasped as white and black feathers danced around Dat, a powerful aura resonating from both Zerrus and him.

 

 "O-okay! Just... put me down!" he stammered. Zerrus glanced back at Dat and he nodded to her. She slowly slid him down but kept her hand on his shirt. Zerrus started to laugh hysterically, the orb switching from a golden hue to a violet.

 

 "You certainly have a lot of courage to attack a random person on the street. But when you're caught snooping in their home? You cower like a frightened dog!" Zerrus snapped, shoving the man further into the wall. "I honestly should KILL you where you stand!"

 

 Dat shut the grimoire, the feathers that swirled around him dissipated into puffs of magic. He stepped up to Zerrus and set a hand on her shoulder. She shrugged off his hand and the orb vanished. Sans and Papyrus were standing at the far corner of the room, watching the couple bare down upon the intruder.

 

 "But... I am not the scum YOU are. I know I can be a violent person, but not nearly as consistant as you. I have control and decency. I KNOW not to hurt or kill others for some sick thrill." Zerrus threw the man down to the floor and stepped on his back as he scrambled to get back to his feet. "But I WILL hurt others if they prove to be a threat to the innocent."

 

 Two magical chains lashed out from behind her and bound his hands, then the chains lifted him up and planted him firmly into a chair. The chains wrapped around his torso and then glued themselves to the floor, preventing his movement. "You aren't gonna move until you tell us what we want to know." Dat growled as he balled up his fist and stepped beside his wife. "So... spill it."


	3. Crystal Children

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After catching an intruder in their home, Zerrus and Dat begin to interrogate the mysterious man in hopes of learning who he is and who sent him.

 

 The magical chains that wrapped around the stranger tightened and pulled even further into the floor. He shrieked in agony, his breath cutting off a bit. "Start talking." Zerrus snarled, her hand pulsing a slight golden color, the same color that the chains were glowing.  
 

"OW! OKAY! I'm a member of the anti-monster extremist group called HAM." he blubbered out, his breathing raspy. Zerrus slightly loosened the chains and started to giggle. Dat burst out laughing and slapped his knee.

 

 "HAM? You want some eggs with that?!" Dat laughed, doubling over and holding his side. Sans chuckled at the poorly laid out pun that left Dat and nudged him.

 

 "good one." Sans complimented.

 

 "A-anyways, they gave me the task of following suspected monsters and testing their mettle. I overheard that secretary call you a monster at the urgent care, so I followed you! It was after you said that you were a human that I texted the boss and let him know that I was tailing you." Zerrus loosened the chains even more to where he could relax a bit as he indulged the information she wanted. "After you walked into the monster bar, I stayed back and watched. When you came out, that's when I sprung the trap."

 

 "Yeah... no shit, Sherlock. You did quite the number on my side. Now, who texted me at the bar AND when I was recovering at the hospital?" Zerrus ordered, tugging the chain slightly.

 

 "That's actually the one thing I don't know."

 

 Zerrus tightened the chain in rage. "Don't you lie to me!"

 

 "OW! I'm NOT! I swear to god!" She eased her grip on the chain and released the stranger. "S-so... am I free to go?"

 

 "Not quite. What's your name?" Dat barked, grabbing the mans shirt.

 

 "Torrence McLair!" he squealed as Dat shook him. He released his shirt and scoffed. Dat walked over to the front door and opened it, glaring at Torrence.

 

 "Get out."

 

 "W-wait a minute! I can help you guys!" Zerrus stepped up to Torrence and stared him down.

 

 "How so? And WHY do you want to help us after you tried to kill me?" Zerrus asked, barely shoving him a bit to show that she wasn't happy with his actions.

 

 "I feel pretty damn bad about what I did! It was actually my boss's orders to attack you. He sounded really excited about who I was following. He's never acted that way!"

 

 "And why should I believe you?"

 

 "I was actually blackmailed into joining HAM. I have no beef with monsters. Hell, I think they're pretty damn neat! I can help you take them down!" Zerrus looked over to Dat and nodded at him. He shut the door and placed the grimoire down on the couch. He eased his stance and stared at Torrence. "I take it that your silence means you'll let me help?"

 

 "Clearly, otherwise you would be thrown right out that door by Dat's gravity manipulation." Zerrus poked Torrence's chest, throwing off his balance. "BUT... this is a mutual partnership. You help us and we won't send you into the depths of hell." Torrence nodded nervously and frantically at her threat.

 

 She went to walk out of the room when she bumped into something. It took her a moment to realize that it was Papyrus she had bumped in. She couldn't help but notice that his chest was actually moving, no doubt connecting to him breathing despite the fact he was a skeleton and had no lungs. When she looked up at him, Papyrus brought a hand up to her forehead.

 

 "YOU SEEM TO BE RUNNING A FEVER, ZERRUS." Papyrus spoke with a hint of concern lacing his voice. Dat turned his attention away from Torrence and over to Zerrus. He didn't seem too concerned about the situation regaurding her temperature, but he did leave the room.

 

 "guess things got a little heated back there." Sans chuckled. Zerrus gigged at the pun despite it being at her expense.

 

 "SANS, THIS IS NOT THE TIME FOR YOU TO BE MAKING PUNS!" Dat walked back in the room carrying a glass of water, a pill, and a damp rag in his other hand. He slapped the cold wet rag on her face and held the glass with the pill.

 

 Dat led Papyrus, who was now carrying Zerrus, to their bedroom. He gently set her down on the bed, Dat handing her the water and the pill. Zerrus refused to take the pill, puffing up her face at it when he brought it to her. "Oh come on." Dat grumbled.

 

 She shook her head swiftly and turned away from the pill. Dat sighed loudly and placed the pill on the bedside table. Zerrus groaned as she tossed in the bed to get comfortable. Papyrus stood at her bedside, watching her as she continued to toss and turn. Zerrus stared up at the ceiling as she lost herself in her thoughts.

 

 'The eternal guardians... children born from a blue crystal with no parents. They possess wisdom and abilities beyond that of humans, almost godlike. It is said that the guardians are born when the planet needs them the most. However, the legend of the eternal guardian died out centuries ago, along with any traces of the crystal they were supposedly born from. If this were the case, why do Dat and I possess the powers of a guardian when we both knew our parents?'

 

 'Bloodwork and physical properties clearly link up with our parents DNA and genetics. Our parents never had any magical abilities, nor where they born from a crystal. Could it possibly be that the legend has changed? That maybe the eternal guardians are now chosen instead of born? ...No... there's no way that happened. We only recently learned magic. And even then, there's a chance the magic we learned is from the arrival of monsters on the surface.'

 

 'That makes the most sense at this rate. What is confusing me is who has been sending those texts and what they mean. One called me a 'bastard child' and the other said I was uniting with my estranged father, which is impossible since my dad died 4 years ago. Were they talking about Sans? Cause he was the one I was talking to when I got those texts. I guess that explains one of the texts...'

 

 A wet plop snapped Zerrus out of her thoughts, a rag covering her eyes. She jumped up, sending the rag falling off of her face and on her lap. She looked over to see Sans sitting in the desk chair, reading one of the many books she had lying around. Zerrus glanced over to the clock on the table to see that it was 6:31 in the evening. She looked back over to Sans with a confused look on her face. "Where's Dat?"

 

 "he stepped out with my bro." Sans responded as he shut the book. "you've got some interesting books here."

 

 "Yeah well... they're just hand-me-downs." Zerrus reclined against the pillows and stared back up at the ceiling. She sighed heavily, ignoring the fact that Sans was sitting close by.

 

 "you were thinking pretty deeply there. you were just staring at the ceiling for hours." Zerrus rolled over on her side, facing away from Sans. "what were you thinking about?"

 

 "Read the book." she grumbled, refusing to face Sans. She wanted to be left alone, but at the same time she didn't. Sans huffed quietly and opened the book. The sound of pages turning echoed in the room. An unusual sound caused Zerrus to turn over to see that something had fallen out of the book Sans was reading. "What the hell is that?"

 

 He bent down and picked up a small object that had fallen from between the pages. Upon closer inspection, it was a crystal no bigger than the size of a marble. The color was close to that of an aquamarine stone, and it held a strange beauty to it that entranced both Sans and Zerrus. He brought the crystal just a few inches closer to Zerrus, a cooling mist filling the room.

 

 Sans then retracted the crystal and the mist faded. "seems like this gem reacts to you." he muttered, bringing the fragment closer and retracting it again. "guess it makes sense, given the nature of your soul."

 

 "The nature of my soul?" Zerrus inquired, cocking her head slightly to the side.

 

 "well, i can show you." Sans extended a hand out towards her, Zerrus leaning away from him. She eyed him for a minute, trying to determine his actions. She took his hand and Sans brought it to her chest. The action caused her to flinch when she felt something pull on her chest.

 

 The tugging intensified until she felt like a chunk of her torso was missing. Zerrus looked down to see a cartoony shaped heart floating in their hands. The heart looked like a solid jelly, blue and red colors rippling through the shape. She went to touch it with her other hand, hesitating as she drew closer to it.

 

 "this is your SOUL. the colors that are shining through it represent your traits. right now, you are patient, determined, and you have quite a bit of integrity." Sans explained.

 

 "How can you tell?" Zerrus asked, drawing her gaze directly to the soul.

 

 "there are seven colors that define the properties of each soul's make-up. red is determination, orange is bravery, yellow is justice, green is kindness, teal is patience, blue is integrity, and purple is perserverence. everybody has all of these traits, but usually one or two traits are more prominent than the others."

 

 "There are three traits in mine though. Have you ever seen this before?"

 

 "it's rare, but yes i have. what i haven't seen is how your soul reacts to certain situations." Sans brought his hand closer to the soul, the little heart retreated over to Zerrus's hand. "did you see the way it reacted?"

 

 "Why did it react that way?"

 

 "your soul can sense my magic. it's afraid of me."

 

 "Waitwaitwait... my SOUL is afraid? Why am I not?" Sans shrugged, the tiny little soul ducking down in to her palm. "Hey there, little guy. It's okay." Zerrus cooed to the little soul, it slightly perking up and nudging against her hand. "That's right. We won't hurt you."

 

 The color of the soul pulsed a green, along with teal. The jelly-like make-up of the soul shivering slightly as it poked up and hovered in her hand. "never seen someone comfort a soul before. but did you see the color change? your traits changed in that moment trying to comfort the poor thing."

 

 "Well... it's kinda cute. I know it's my soul, but something about it makes me think of a poor baby animal." The soul bounced in her hand almost happily, fading away back into her chest. "Heh... guess it liked being called a baby animal." Zerrus looked over to the book that Sans was reading and hummed to herself. "Looks like you found a book on our mythology."

 

 "yeah. i was reading about the legend of the eternal guardians; the crystal children. something about them seems familiar to me, but i don't recall ever reading a book about this while monsters lived in the undergound."

 

 "I know the feeling, Sans. Sometimes when you hear something it reminds you of another." Zerrus sat up and swung her legs over the side of the bed, staring at the floor. "To be honest... sometimes it's hard to connect the dots to my memories. When I do remember something, I can't remember the crucial details. It's kinda like looking into a steamy mirror: I can see it, but only barely."

 

 Silence filled the room, neither Sans nor Zerrus said anything more. They simply sat and stared either at each other or something else. Sans simply continued to read the book and Zerrus remained staring at the floor. She nervously tapped her foot and her leg bounced in anticipation.

 

 "something on your mind, zerrus?" Sans blurted out, startling Zerrus. She jumped up, a heatwave shooting up her spine. She gasped a few times to catch her bearings. "whoa! take it easy there! didn't mean to rattle your bones."

 

 Zerrus snerked at his remark, her body flaring up even more. "D-Dude! Really?! HA HA! Holy SHIT! Ohh... you're killin' me." Zerrus howled with laughter, holding her sides. Dat knocked on the door and stepped inside, Zerrus looking up at him with a beet red face and a huge grin. "There you are, Dat. Where've you been?"

 

 "Went out to drop Torrence off at a meeting point with some members of HAM." Dat started.

 

 "hope they didn't glaze over any details." Sans grinned. Zerrus face palmed at the oncoming puns. "so, do we have a location where we can smoke them out?"

 

 "SAAAAAAAANS!" Papyrus yelled from the other room. Sans, Zerrus, and Dat all belted out laughing at the puns that left the stocky skeleton. Dat coughed roughly and cleared his throat, shifting his stance to that of a serious one.

 

 "We only got a little bit of info. Turns out they are really interested in Zerrus cause of her soul. They did mention however that there was another similar to her. Not sure who it could be though." Dat pondered. Sans was about to say something when Zerrus shot him a don't-say-anything look. "All Papyrus and I could hear was that they will do whatever they can to take their souls and lead them to ultimate power. HAM will become a great threat to monsters AND humans if they manage it."

 

 "Well, we sure as hell can't let that happen. Right, honey?" Zerrus smirked.

 

 "Hah! Good one, Techy. Now, we'd better start training ourselves to fight against them. Yo Sans, know anybody who can help us?"

 

 "OH! HOW ABOUT UNDYNE? SHE KNOWS JUST ABOUT EVERYTHING WHEN IT COMES TO FIGHTING! AFTER ALL, SHE WAS THE CAPTAIN OF ROYAL GUARD BACK IN THE UNDERGROUND!" Papyrus suggested. Dat and Zerrus looked over at each other and nodded.

 

 "Sounds like a plan, Papyrus. We'll be sure to speak with her in a couple of days. First, we gotta make sure my physical wounds are healed. Once we are certain I'm capable of holding off any pain caused by it, we'll be sure to start training with her." Zerrus commented, thumping her fist against her chest to assert her determination to take down HAM.


	4. Building Bridges

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zerrus and Dat head to Undyne to train for the battle against HAM.

  


 An eery fog filled the room, Zerrus scanning the area to figure out where she is. She glanced down at the floor and recognized it from her nightmare from last night. In a fight or flight response, she jumped back and widened her stance. "Where are you?!" she shouted out to the void.  
   


Silence answered her, only making Zerrus far more enraged. She snarled out to the presence she knew was there in the vast emptiness. Her face was slammed down into the airy floor, the sound of glass crunching under her. The violet lightning shot up just inches away from her face, her hair standing up its ends. Zerrus pushed herself up to her feet and looked behind her to see nothing.  


  


 She felt a violent tug on her chest and her soul lurched forward. Orange, red, purple, and blue colors rippled on the soul. The little heart started to warp and contort its form into something she couldn't understand. A set of knives hovered around the innocent soul, the heart shriveling down and trying to jump back into her chest.  


  


 All of the knives dove into the small heart, blood spurting out from it and tearing apart. Zerrus howled out in agony, watching as her body lost its own color and break apart. She fell to her hands and knees in a feeble attempt to keep herself held together. "W-Why are you doing this?" Zerrus groaned, blood spilling out from her mouth.  


  


 The remnants of her soul rained down on the ground in front of her, a mixture of colors exploding into particles of light. Her soul crumbled entirely, Zerrus's body soon followed suit. The darkness swallowed her whole, her breath was practically ripped from her lungs, and her vision had faded into nothingness.  


  


 Zerrus shot up from the bed, falling out of it and landing on the floor with a loud thud. Dat sprung up and looked down to see his wife splayed out on the floor. "Zerrus! Shit, you alright?!" Dat yelled in concern, rolling out of bed and pulling her up to her feet.  


  


 She panted heavily as she struggled for air from the terrible nightmare. She instinctively looked down to her chest and clutched it tightly, praying that her soul was still intact. "D-Dat... holy shit! That... That dream was just terrible!" Zerrus stammered, the reticle shape in her eye scanning the room.  


  


  


 "What happened in your dream?" Dat cuddled Zerrus in an attmept to calm her down. Zerrus shook her head rapidly, not wanting to think about what happened in her dream. 

"Okay... I won't make you relive that horrible dream. Just... I'm here. Calm down, sweetie."  


  


 After a while of holding Zerrus into a comforting embrace, her breathing returned to normal and she was no longer trembling. The lighting of the reticle now dimmed, she scanned the area once more. "I'm fine now... thanks, Dat." Dat nodded at his now calm wife and pat her shoulder, standing up to get dressed. "We have training today, right?"  


  


 "Yeah. Sans and Papyrus should be coming over here at around noon to take us over to Undyne's training program." Dat tossed Zerrus her bodysuit she wore during work, the spandex of the suit was thick enough to keep herself covered yet thin enough for her to wear different clothing items over it.  


  


 Zerrus stared at her husband, not wanting to change in front of him even though they've been married for almost a year. Dat had no problem though, seeing as how Zerrus didn't react strongly to someone changing in front of her. Dat knew this, and he respected that because Zerrus was very self conscious. She was so self conscious that they haven't even sealed their union as a married couple.  


  


 Dat was very understanding in the matter, knowing that their bond was purely by soul and not physical. Once he was dressed in a pair of sweatpants, a baggy t-shirt, and a pair of sneakers, he left the room. Zerrus stared down at the bodysuit. Black leggings with a pale blue vestment and darker blue sleeves. Attached to the suit is a pair of black gloves, which usually came in handy for on the job situations where she needed better grip.  


  


 A round crystalline casing was stitched on to the fabric of the bodysuit, though Zerrus could never understand why. Regardless of its purpose, she kept it there simply because it gave the outfit a bit more flare. She stopped staring at the bodysuit and tore off her shirt, the bandages wrapped around her chest barely even specked with blood.  


  


 Deciding to take off the bandage, she carefully peeled the gauze off of her side. Her eyes widened when she saw the condition the stab wound was in. All that remained was a small little scratch, and even that wasn't bleeding too much. Zerrus smiled a bit as she wrapped the slightly bloody gauze with the bandages.  


  


 She stepped out of the bedroom, fully clothed and carrying the soiled bandages. To her surprise, Sans and Papyrus were in the living room, chatting with Dat as he prepped some coffee. "AH HELLO THERE, ZERRUS! DID YOU SLEEP WELL?" Papyrus greeted.  


  


 "If by well you mean falling out of the bed, then yes." Zerrus sarcastically replied, walking over to the kitchen and grabbing a coffee mug. "You guys want any?"  


  


 "sure." Sans shrugged at Zerrus's offer. She looked at the shelves and noticed that the only remaining coffee mugs were on a higher shelf than she could reach. She pouted slightly as she stood on her tip toes to reach the cups. She nearly toppled over as she grabbed one of the coffee mugs.  


  


 Losing her balance almost entirely, Zerrus rolled on her feet, the mug still intact. She stood up and cleared her throat as Papyrus, Sans, and Dat were staring at her in confusion. Zerrus chuckled nervously and set the mug down on the counter. "S-Sorry about that. N-Now, do you want cream or sugar? Or do you just want it black?"  


  


 "black is fine." Zerrus nodded at his response, prepping his coffee for him. She trailed off in thought as she handed him his mug.  


  


 'These nightmares... they are becoming far more frequent. Not only that, but it seems they are becoming far more violent. Whoever, or whatever is affecting my dreams clearly wants to make it easy to understand. That no matter where I am, I'm easy to break.'  


  


 'I need to find out what is causing these nightmares... let alone what is so... special about my soul.'  


  


 Sans tapped Zerrus's shoulder and his eye sockets were blank. She took the hint and laughed nervously again, grabbing her mug and taking a few sips. "we need to talk." Sans whispered. Zerrus looked at him while still sipping on her coffee. "something is clearly bugging you. so much to the fact that you won't even confide in your husband. don't you realize that he is worried about you?"  


  


 Zerrus stopped sipping her coffee and stared down at the floor. "I can't tell him what's wrong... Dat already suffers knowing that I'm slowly mutating into something else. Something not entirely human. If I involve him in this... I-." Zerrus mumbled, ringing her hands around her mug.  


  


 "stop that." His voice was so stern it cause Zerrus to jump in her skin. "you need to see that you have friends who are willing to help bear that burden with you. even though you won't confide in your husband, why not confide in your friends?"  


  


 She felt a sort of sting in her chest, causing her to fall over. She gasped violently as her vision blurred and the weight in her chest intensified. She closed her eyes to prevent herself from getting dizzy from the feeling of the room spinning. When she reopened her eyes, there were gold and orange tiles decorating the floor.  


  


 Zerrus looked up to see Sans standing a fair distance away, his face seemingly dark as he looked down at her. "What the hell? Sans, where are we?!" Zerrus yelled out to him, struggling to stand up when her face was slammed down to the floor. She groaned loudly as her back cracked from the pressure weighing her down to ground.  


  


 Blood spurt out from her as he threw his hand upwards, Zerrus following with the motion as she smacked into the ceiling. She fell to the ground in a steady motion, looking up at him with anger boiling within her. Zerrus felt herself stand up on her own, wiping her mouth and spitting out a string of blood.  


  


 Drawing a knife from her pocket, Zerrus charged forward and slashed at him, beyond her control. She drew her attention to Sans, his boney hands wrapped around her throat and knocked the knife from her hands.  


  


 "S-SANS! Please! Have mer... cy!" Zerrus choked out as he pressed down even further on her throat.  


  


 "mercy? like the mercy you showed papyrus, you dirty brother killer!" Sans shouted at her, his left eye shining a cyan blue flame. Zerrus closed her eyes, her breathing becoming very rough. "...-us? zerrus?"  


  


 "Wh-what just happened? Everything felt so heavy, and I couldn't really breathe." Dat rushed over to Zerrus and pat her back, she let off a few especially hard coughs and a tiny speck of blood set on her hand. "This is why we need to train. I need to fight whatever this is."  


  


 Standing in front of the gym known as 'The Arena', Zerrus and Dat stood by each other, their hands held tightly. She looked up at him and gave a curt nod, taking her hand away from his. Zerrus pushed open the door, Dat and the skeleton brothers walking in as she held the door open.  


  


 Across the room at a punching bag was a blue fish-like woman with red hair tied up into a ponytail. Her outfit reminded Zerrus of a classic Lara Croft from the old playstation games. The monster turned to see Dat and Zerrus standing there, Zerrus looking determined and Dat carrying a duffle bag with a focused look on his face.  


  


 "Ah, you must be the two punks Papyrus told me about! Name's Undyne." Undyne greeted, stopping the punching bag from swaying from its previous onslaught. Zerrus nodded at her previous statement and approached Undyne with bravery lining her stance.  


  


 "Zerrus Teknianu." she introduced, extending her hand out to Undyne. Undyne took her hand with a firm shake, Zerrus barely able to hold back the pained expression on her face from the pressure.  


  


 "Dat Asuar. I hope you can train us to fend for ourselves against those damned anti-monster extremists." Dat greeted with a slight shrug.  


  


 "You two weenies are in luck! Not many humans come here just cause the instructor is a monster capable of snapping these chains in half with a flick of a wrist." Undyne mentioned, gesturing towards the chain of the punching bag she was just using.  


  


 "Well, sounds about right. I mean, you monsters aren't exactly weak." Zerrus commented, walking up to the neighboring bag and planting a well-placed punch, a loud thwump resonating through the gym. "But THAT isn't what makes a monster... a monster." Zerrus turned to face Undyne and the others, thumping her chest with her fist. "And WE'RE gonna prove that."  


  


 "Now THAT'S the kind of attitude we need in this gym! You got a lot of fight in ya! And that's something I respect!" Undyne stepped up to Zerrus and gave her a noogie, causing Zerrus to giggle involuntarily at the gesture.  


  


 Zerrus continued to assault the punching bag, each punch swung was well placed as they all connected with the bag. She prioritized her anger she felt at the situation into her attacks, focused on becoming stronger in the sense that she can protect herself and others. Dat was wrestling with Undyne in the far corner of the room in the ring. Zerrus heard footsteps behind her, which caught her off guard and caused her to spin on her heels to face the person approaching.  


  


 To her surprise, it was both Sans and Papyrus. "Need something?" she asked, barely a huff to her voice. Zerrus wiped her forehead with the towel that she had cut in half a year prior for her jobs. She slung it over her shoulder and crossed her arms, her stance relaxed but still a bit tense.  


  


 "WOWIE! I'VE NEVER SEEN SOMEONE SO FOCUSED ON THEIR ATTACKS BEFORE!" Papyrus complimented, scratching his cheekbone. "EXCEPT FOR UNDYNE, THAT IS."  


  


 "Well... when you put your mind to something that you know you NEED to accomplish and WANT to accomplish... you do whatever it takes to finish it. I learned that years ago." Zerrus punched the bag once and stuffed her hands in the vest pockets of her bodysuit. "Never thought I'd have to bring it into a more physical aspect than fighting to keep 

myself healthy."  


  


 "WHAT DO YOU MEAN 'FIGHTING TO KEEP YOURSELF HEALTHY?'"  


  


 "I'm not the healthiest person in the world. I have panic attacks, hot flashes, cold flashes, fatigue, conscious seizures, dizzy spells... the list goes on. If it weren't for Dat helping me through it..." Zerrus trailed off, looking over to Dat as he sparred with Undyne. "I honestly don't know where I'd be now."  


  


 "the unknown can be frightening, kid." Sans added, cautiously approaching Zerrus.  


  


 "Yeah, but you know what? Just knowing that the unknown is there, and what COULD happen, I push myself to avoid it. Sometimes I am curious, but at the same time... I'm terrified. It's THAT sentimentality that drives me forward. I've missed out on important moments in the past that makes me ask 'what could have been' or even 'what would have happened if' and I'm tired of missing out on those important moments." Zerrus side-stepped and sidearmed the bag, ducking under it and stopping it with her forearm as it swung around. "I won't make the same mistakes as before. I made a promise to myself, and I WON'T break that promise."  


  


 "SOUNDS LIKE ONE DOOZY OF A PROMISE. WHY DID YOU MAKE THAT PROMISE IF YOU KNOW IT WILL BE HARD TO KEEP IT?" Papyrus asked.  


  


 "That's..." Zerrus's eyes started to water as she thought about her dad, how he had passed away because of his mistakes and that she didn't have the chance to say goodbye. She sniffled slightly, taking a deep inhale and holding the bag in place, almost holding herself up. "That's something I would rather not go into right now."  


  


 "I... I'M SORRY IF I UPSET YOU, ZERRUS. I DIDN'T MEAN TO."  


  


 "No no... it's not your fault, Papyrus. It's just a touchy subject with me. Maybe one day I'll tell you."  


  


 Sans stepped up to Zerrus, placing a hand on her shoulder and barely nudging her. "look kiddo, sometimes... you should talk to those around you. who knows? maybe they can help you through whatever heartache is hurtin' ya."  


  


 "This is the type of heartache that can't really go away. It sticks to ya, like a parasite. The only thing I can do is remember." Zerrus reached down the front of her shirt and pulled out a small platinum cross, almost shaped like a celtic cross. She held it tightly, a single tear running down her cheek. "I can NEVER allow myself to forget."  


  


 A towel aimed for Zerrus flew by her at a fast speed, she quickly jumped back to avoid the sweaty rag. Zerrus looked over to Undyne and Dat, a mischievous grin painted on her face. "Nice dodge, punk! You tore yourself out of your thoughts to notice the 'attack' that was launched at you and avoided it accordingly." Undyne complimented, nudging Dat over.  


  


 Zerrus scoffed, stepping into the ring and guiding Dat out. "Wanna test my mettle, eh? Come on!" She feld up her fists and smirked, she bounced slightly in her stance. Undyne smiled and widened her stance in return, throwing a few merciless glances. "Your move."  


  


 Undyne kicked out at Zerrus, Zerrus crossing her arms in front of her and deflecting the kick. She followed the block with a sweep of her legs, Undyne stepping back and countering with a downwards punch. Zerrus bounced backwards, landing in a handstand and kicking upwards, Undyne blocked the attack with her arm. She countered the kick by grabbing Zerrus's leg and keeping her stationary.  


  


 She grunted and rolled out from her grip, twisting her ankle with an agonizing crack. Zerrus groaned loudly, ignoring the pain spiking up her ankle and rolled backwards. She stood up shakily and held her arms up, waiting for another strike when Undyne extended her hand to Zerrus as a peace offering.  


  


 "You held out pretty well. Your technique was down to a point, and I wasn't holding back! Guess you aren't a weenie after all." Undyne smiled, hoisting Zerrus up to her feet. "How's your ankle? I heard it crack during our brawl."  


  


 Zerrus tapped her foot against the floor, each tap sending a splintering feeling of pain up her leg. "Could be worse. Not the first time my ankle's twisted like that." Zerrus responded, tilting her leg up and high enough for her to rub at the pinched nerves. "So... you really think I did well?"  


  


 "OF COURSE! YOU HELD NOTHING BACK!" Papyrus added bringing a hand down to her shoulder and patting her slightly.  


  


 "Well... I actually DID hold back. I had to contain my anger, otherwise I would probably end up sending this place to the freakin' stars." Zerrus mumbled, waving her hand and letting tiny specks of magic dust off of her fingertips. Each speck imploded, letting off a tiny pop of air and the scent of berries filled the room.  


  


 "Looks like the only training you need is magic control. I'm not really the one to teach you considering the unique nature of your soul." Undyne motioned to Zerrus's chest. She glanced down and saw that the gem that was resting on her chest was glowing blue, red, orange, and purple. Zerrus was surprised that the coloration of her soul was shining through the decoration of her bodysuit.  


  


 "Who could train me then?"  


  


 "My suggestion would be Sans."  


  


 "Sans?! Wh-..." Zerrus turned and looked at Sans, his face dashed with a faint blue. "HE can train me in magic control?!"  


  


 "Better him than me. Besides, I gotta focus on your friend here." Undyne pulled Dat closer to her, pinning his arms to his side. "He's kinda a bit of weenie with his attacks. Very sloppy."  


  


 "He... uh-." Zerrus stalled when Papyrus blurted out what she was about to say.  


  


 "THAT'S HER HUSBAND." Papyrus smiled widely.  


  


 "REALLY? I heard that when humans marry, the chick always takes the man's last name! But your names are different." Undyne stuttered, taking quick glances at Dat and Zerrus, the both of them shifting uneasily.  


  


 Zerrus took her time explaining to Undyne why they had different last names; that their marriage was more of a way of protecting each other. She explained to her that Dat and Zerrus met five years prior to being married, always sticking by each other and helping the other when they truly need it. When she finished explaining, Zerrus sat down on one of the folding chairs, taking a few deep breaths to collect herself.  


  


 "hey kid." Sans spoke, jarring Zerrus from her thoughts and looking up to him with foggy eyes. "you okay? you don't look too good."  


  


 She waved her hand to him to signal that she was feeling well enough to consider herself as 'okay'. He shrugged and took a seat next to her, relaxing into the uncomfortable metal folding chair. "So, Sans?" Zerrus asked, keeping her eyes glued to the floor.  


  


 "hm?"  


  


 "You can use magic... right?" She smacked her forehead and started cackling. "Well no shit... monsters and magic go hand-in-hand... But what I meant was you can train me in magic control?"  


  


 "i practice magic control on a daily basis." Sans looked down at Zerrus with a mischievous grin drawing on his boney face. Zerrus caught sight of it out of her peripheral vision.  


  


 "Don't. You. Dare..."  


  


 "i guess you could say-"  


  


 "Sans..."  


  


 "that i'm-"  


  


 "Don't you do it!"  


  


 "a boneified trainer." Zerrus burst out laughing, holding her sides and taking sharp inhales to keep herself from passing out from lack of oxygen. She coughed roughly, her voice starting to sound like nails scratching on a chalkboard. "did i tickle your funny bone?"  


  


 "Yeah, yeah you did." Zerrus looked over to the clock on the far wall, grimacing at the time. "Hm. Think we can start training tomorrow? It's kinda not a good idea to try to train me at this time. I typically sit down and unwind around this time, it's kinda convenient since I tend to bottom out."  


  


 "yeah, not a problem. best to get some rest before tomorrow. your training is going to put a strain on your soul until you are used to it."  


  


 "Figures. Hell, what is magic if not an assertion of your soul's power?"  


  


 "exactly."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Want to see what Zerrus looks like in her bodysuit? Check it out here, on my tumblr!
> 
> https://enraged-erin.tumblr.com/post/154321833821/zerrus-teknianu-in-her-bodysuit


	5. Soul

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zerrus, now having to train under Sans, must conquer her magic before it conquers her.

 

 Violet lightning... Zerrus knew what this meant. She was having that nightmare again. She attempted to force herself out of her dream state when a voice rang in her ear. "You cannot wake from this reality."

 

 "Reality? What the hell do you mean?!" Zerrus demanded, rage tracing her voice. The shadowy figure she has seen these past few nights stood directly in front of her, grabbing her hair and pulling her up to meet his face. Zerrus held back a grunt as she felt her hair tug at the roots. She kicked herself downwards, hair tearing from her scalp and causing some mild bleeding.

 

 "Seems you are persistant on defying me..."

 

 "Damn straight." A bolt of lightning struck her directly, her soul springing from her and floating just in front of her eyes. Almost, if not all color was drained from the small heart, a deep crack growing in the center. Her eyes widened as a pair of disembodied hands snatched her soul away from her.

 

 Refusing to scream out at the figure, she stared at him intently with rage flaring from her eye. "If you won't obey me, then you will need to be taught a lesson." He squeezed Zerrus's soul in his hands, a blood curdling scream escaping her. The pain was hard to describe, she felt like her entire body was being crushed or grinded in a meat grinder.

 

 Growling loudly, a burst of golden light engulfed Zerrus and knocked her attacker away. Her soul fluttered to the ground, trembling and shriveling down. "What... the hell did you do?!"

 

 "You will learn in time, child." Zerrus's vision faded, hearing only the cackling of the shadow.

 

 Her eyes shot open as she gasped for air. Zerrus felt tears threatening to fall as her entire body shook. She looked to her right, Dat was still sleeping like a rock. She slid out of the bed and  put on the clothes she had set out for the day. A pair of black demin jeans, a navy blue tank top, and her blue sneakers. Zerrus silently sighed, leaving the bedroom and stepping out to the back deck of their house.

 

 She pulled her cell phone out from her pocket, expecting to get another anonymous text. Nothing. Scrolling through her contacts, she found Sans's number. Hesitating, Zerrus trailed off in thought. She remembered what he had said before, about needing to confide in others to help her through her problems. Zerrus finally decided to hit the call button, not expecting a response so quickly.

 

 "sup?" Sans answered.

 

 "Think you can come over? We need to talk." She mumbled.

 

 "sure, i'll be there in just a moment."

 

 "Wha- how? That's impossi-" She jumped at the familiar feeling of a boney finger tapping her shoulder. "-ble..." She hung up the phone and turned to look at Sans, a smug grin still plastered on his face. "Figured... sneaky skele."

 

 "so, what's buggin' ya?"

 

 "Guess it's pretty obvious, huh?" Sans nodded, Zerrus sighing and leaning against the rialing. "I've been having these strange dreams lately. Well... dream is a bit of a stretch. They're flat out horrific nightmares. Each one becoming increasingly worse. Hell, you remember when I woke up violently at your place?"

 

 "not hard to forget. you were a nervous wreck."

 

 "Well, that was the first one. There was no ground underneath me to the naked eye, but my feet were sturdy, indicating that there was INDEED some sort of ground. Next... there was a violet lightning storm. Whatever was there said I was almost ready to tame. The second time... I watched my soul being torn apart by knives. And just now... the same shadow that was there the first time reappeared. A pair of hands grabbed my soul, practically squeezing the life out of it. He kept saying that I need to obey him and because I kept defying him I needed to be taught a lesson."

 

 Zerrus looked over to Sans, the lights in his eyes vanished, fear and anger evident in his face. He brought a hand over to her chest, the familiar tug causing her to look down and watch as her soul emerged. The crack she saw in her dream was still there. "kid... hate to break it to ya, but those aren't dreams."

 

 "Yeah... that's what that voice said. I was afraid of that..." She took her soul from his hands, cradling it and shushing it as it shivered. "What can be done to prevent this damage from spreading?"

 

 "i hope you are ready to start your magic control training."

 

 "If it will help me protect this poor soul, then I don't care what it takes! It's obvious this soul has its own conscience and I want to protect it, regardless of the physical and mental consequences." The soul bounced up in Zerrus's hands, seemingly crawling up to her shoulder and nuzzling her cheek. Sans strode by her and set something up behind her while she stared at her soul. He returned and cleared his throat, drawing her attention.

 

 "okay, first: extend your arm out like this." Sans held his arm outward, palm out as if he were pushing something. Zerrus copied the motion, her soul floating behind her and changing its shape slightly. "good. now, see that target?"

 

 Zerrus eyed the target and nodded. "Yeah. Now what?"

 

 "concentrate your power into an attack, similar to those orbs you unconsciously summon." She took a deep breath, her eye flashing a bright blue and her hand covered in a similar blue flare. "now, release!"

 

 Zerrus grunted as she released the energy wave that was pent up, shattering the target he had set up.. She turned around to see that her soul had changed shape entirely. No longer was it a heart, but now a faded blue furred wolf with beady red eyes. Zerrus and Sans watched in awe as her soul lowered down to the ground, landing on all four paws and approaching them. "W-What is this?"

 

 Sans's grin lowered slightly and raised his arm again, his left eye shining a bright cyan. It was almost exactly like that of Zerrus's eye when she focuses her magic or becomes enraged. A dragon-like skull hovered behind him, a menacing sight to Zerrus as she stepped backwards and nearly stumbled into her manifested creature. "your soul's power can shift into various forms. what your power manipulates into is almost an exact copy of my magic. there's only one difference: your LV."

 

 "LV?"

 

 "LOVE. It stands for Level Of Violence. it measures your capacity to hurt others. the higher the LV, the more you distance yourself from others. but your LV is unbelievable, especially for someone of your nature."

 

 "What IS my Level Of Violence?" Sans's eyes went dark, staring directly at her. She gulped hard as she felt like his stare was like knives.

 

 "90."

 

 "How?! Tell me, how does one acquire LV?"

 

 "your LV increases through EXP. EXP stands for Execution Points. as the name suggests, it is the amount of lives taken. not everybody provides the same EXP upon death, but that all depends on their LV. but what makes it strange is your EXP is 0."

 

 "Then... how the hell is my Level Of Violence 90 when I haven't killed anyone?"

 

 "i have no idea, but there's more." Zerrus sat down, the summoned wolf resting her head on her lap. "your LV almost immediately increases when you exert strong negative emotions. for instance, being calm like you are, your LV is 1."

 

 "Huh... tell me, does Dat have the same problem?"

 

 "kinda."

 

 "Kinda? Elaborate please."

 

 "dat shares your LV through a bond you two created. your souls have a sort of link, one that shares your powers. dat has a natural mastery of magic but a terrible distribution of physical prowess. you on the other hand are the complete opposite."

 

 "How do you think our souls linked in the first place?" Sans shook his head with a shrug. Zerrus heaved a deep sigh, the summoned wolf disappearing with a puff of rainbow particles. "Right... well, I gotta head to the store and buy a few things. If you wanna tag along, you can."

 

 "sure, besides..." Sans gave a wink in her direction and extended his hand out to her. "i honestly don't know anything about you. you still haven't told me anything about yourself."

 

 "Same goes for you. We'll chat while I buy the few things we need for the house." Zerrus stood by the notepad left on the kitchen counter and wrote down a note.

 

 'Dat, Sans and I went shopping to restock our shelves and grab a few vitamins and ingredients for magic balance supplemens. Will be back soon.'

 

 She set the pen down and grabbed her wallet off the coffee table. Zerrus glanced over to Sans and snatched her car keys off of the hook near the front door. "The blue car. That one's mine." Zerrus motioned towards the deep blue and red sports car the skeleton brothers had pulled up to before.

 

 Once inside the store, Zerrus perused the shelves and picking up a few items such as salt, cooking oil, sugar, and even some extra condiments. She pushed the buggy slowly as she scanned the different types of vitamins. "anything you looking for in particular?" Sans asked, looking at the vitamins with her with a confused look.

 

 "Yeah, looking for the women's multivitamins. I take them to stimulate hair growth." Zerrus explained, still looking through the different bottles of vitamins ranging from iron supplements to common supplements such as Vitamin C.

 

 "why would you need to take something like that? are you unhappy with short hair?"

 

 "Oh no, it's not that. See, I have a health condition that can cause major hair loss. I was actually bald for 6, almost 7 years until just a few months ago. I got a colorful array of comments during that time such as being called a man and having cancer." Zerrus shuddered at her last remark, her eyes immediately darting over to see that Sans was standing next to the multivitamins she was looking for. "See that pink capped bottle?"

 

 "are those it?"

 

 "Yeah, just go ahead and plop those into the buggy and we can get out of this aisle. There's a familiar smell in this area I hate." They pushed onwards, Zerrus picking up various condiments and seasonings. "At any rate, I'm past all that. I'm just glad to have a full head of hair again."

 

 "you said it was a health condition. how did it happen?"

 

 "Genetics. My dad had diabetes and my mom had gestational diabetes when she was pregnant with me. Not only that, my family has a pretty bad medical history, so it was bound to happen to either me or my sister."

 

 "you have a sister? is she anything like you?"

 

 "Oh hell no. Complete opposite. Her health is excellent, but let's just say that her mental stability could use a bit of work." She stopped in her tracks and felt a chill creep up her back, causing her to shudder. Sans turned to look at her, his eye lights fading slightly.

 

 "you alright?"

 

 "Yeah, just a cold flash. It happens. So... I couldn't help but notice something."

 

 "what is it?"

 

 "You kinda remind me a lot of my dad. Your personalities are rather close. Granted he wasn't very laid back, but he was definitely a funny guy. When I see you, I feel like I'm with him again. It's probably why I took an immediate liking to you."

 

 "Figured you would, monster lover." sneered one of the passing customers. Zerrus stomped her foot in front of the rear wheel of the buggy, stopping it from moving forward. She turned and looked at the customer with a glare.

 

 "Wanna repeat that?" Zerrus snapped, balling up her fist and stepping up to the man. He stood his ground and looked down at her, ignorance clearly painted to his face.

 

 "If you wanna fraternize with those freaks do it somewhere else. Don't go draggin' everybody else in your-" Zerrus stomped on his foot, causing him to drop his basket and grabbing his foot.

 

 "You ignorant ass. Whatever preconceived notion you have on monsters can go and throw itself into hell. They aren't the monsters in this society. It's people like you who are ignorant to the realization that monster are just like humans. Now... take your shit and get. Out. Of. My. Sight." The frightened man quickly picked up his basket and scampered away from Zerrus, her face flushing red with anger. She turned to see Sans, his eyes completely blank and his grin now flat. "Heh... sorry. I kinda got a bad temper when it comes to people like that."

 

 "it's fine. it's pretty cool that you are willing to stand up for monsters." Sans thanked, his eyes lighting up in his sockets. Zerrus smiled widely and scratched the back of her head. She went back to her buggy and continued to roam the aisles in search of items Dat and herself needed for the house. "i hate to ask this, but how did your father die?"

 

 "It's a touchy subject with me, but I guess it'll help to get it off my chest. He passed away from a medical condition. Dad fell into a coma and the hospital wouldn't help him. His wish was that if it ever came to the point that he would have to live by life support... we were to pull the plug." She stopped in front of the shelves that stocked buckets of cheeseballs, her eyes tearing up slightly. "He was truly a headtrip. Not a day goes by that I don't miss him. B-but enough of that! Anything else you wanna know?"

 

 "not something i'm comfortable asking you in public."

 

 "I'm gonna safely assume you want to know more about humans from one yourself. I don't mind, unless things get too personal." Zerrus stepped up to the register and set her groceries on the belt. A familiar feeling of someone staring at her made her tense up, sweat beading around her forehead.

 

 "Find everything okay?" asked the friendly cashier behind the register, her nametag read as 'Seria'. Zerrus was quick to nod and continued grabbing more items from the cart. "Ooh! A monster! I haven't seen one up close before!"

 

 "What? Not many monsters come in here or something?" Zerrus questioned, grabbing a handful of items and placing them on the belt.

 

 "Sadly, no. The anti-monster extremists make it a point to keep monsters out of establishments like this. I hope none of them show up and mess with you."

 

 "bit too late there, miss. my friend here has been assaulted by them twice already." Sans pointed out, stepping closer to Zerrus as a sign of protection.

 

 "Oh my god! You poor dear! Are you okay?!" Seria blurted out, her eyes widening in concern.

 

 "I'm fine. Nothing I can't handle... uhh... Seria. It doesn't matter to me anyways. As long as they keep their attention off of monsters, I'm fine with it." Zerrus mumbled, taking each bag and placing them back into the cart.

 

 "You shouldn't have to! If there's anything I can do to help, please let me know! $56.32." Zerrus thumbed into her wallet and fished out the money, handing it over to Seria. "Oh! Before you go, here's my number! I'd like to get to know more about monsters, but I'm afraid of those monster haters."

 

 "Understandable, given the situation the extremists put humans who even remotely respect monsters into. I'll be sure to drop you a line from time to time." Seria wrote down her phone number on the receipt and passed it over to Zerrus. She took it with a smile and glanced over to Sans. "Let's get back. Dat is probably awake by now."

 

 She opened the trunk of her car and set the bags into it, setting the soft items to one side and the heavier on the other. She noticed that her toolbox was taking up space and went to move it, tools spilled out from the metal box as it opened in mid-air.

 

 Zerrus groaned and began picking up the tools that fell out. She felt something heavy smack into the back of her head, falling over into her trunk while rubbing her head. She rolled out from the awkward position, falling to the ashpalt and struggling to stand up. She noticed a blood stained rock with a few strands of blue hair near her car. Realization struck her as she pushed herself to her feet with a wobble.

 

 Zerrus took a few thorough glances to see that nobody who could have any intention to harm her or monsters were nearby. "you alright, zerrus?" Sans asked as he helped support Zerrus.

 

 "Yeah... more or less." She winced loudly, her fingers barely grazing the bloody spot on the back of her head. "Shit... better get my ass home to get this wound disinfected."

 

 "i'll drive. we'll get your groceries inside the house, then i'm taking you to a friend."

 

 "Um... alright." Zerrus tossed Sans the keys in her pocket, him catching the keys with ease and guiding her to the passenger seat. "Thanks, Sans. Not sure what I would do without you bailing my ass out all the time."

 

 "ah don't mention it, bucko. it's what friends do."

 

 'Friends... yeah. Sans is a good friend. Couldn't really ask for a better one, even if I tried.'


	6. Healing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After being assaulted in a grocery store parking lot, it's time for Zerrus to open up.

 

 "Thanks for helping me get the groceries into the house, Sans." Zerrus thanked, grabbing 3 bags on each arm and carrying them inside. She set the bags down on the counter, placing the items needed to remain cold in the fridge. "I'll have Dat put those up later. Gotta do something about this bloody mess." Zerrus turned to face Sans. "Where does your friend live?"

 

 "just... hold on to me. i know a shortcut." Sans winked, grabbing Zerrus's arm and linking it firmly around his. "you may want to close your eyes."

 

 Refusing to do so, Zerrus watched as everything melted into darkness, gravity gave way from her, her stomach felt like it was flipping. Her vision returned, her breath cut off from the experience. She fell to one knee as she gasped for air, her entire body trembling. "Holy... shit."

 

 "heh heh. normally when i teleport someone, they say they feel like puking. you seem pretty resilient."

 

 "HARDLY. Thank god for my stomach meds." Zerrus pushed herself back up to her feet, rubbing the back of her head. "Besides, I happen to know how to teleport as well, just not very far distances. I know this is near the downtown area."

 

 "neat."

 

 Sans knocked on the door, the muffled sound of someone getting up from another room brought her attention to the door. "I'm coming!" A feminine voice called out from inside the house. The door opened and a white furred goat woman in a purple dress smiled at Sans. "Oh! Hello, Sans! Are you here to see Frisk?"

 

 "actually, tori, i've got a problem." Sans responded, nudging Zerrus closer to the monster lady. "my friend here keeps getting hurt, and we can't very well drive her to the emergency room every time."

 

 "Oh dear! Please, come in!" She gently placed a hand on Zerrus's back and guided her inside the house. Something made Zerrus lock up, not wanting to talk or even move. The kind monster looked at her head injury and grimaced. "What happened to you, child?"

 

 Zerrus felt her voice catch in her throat, keeping her from being able to speak. She cleared her throat and managed to squeak out a few words. "Bit of a fight in the store parking lot."

 

 "A fight? Oh, you poor thing. Here, let me heal you." A slight tingling sensation on Zerrus's scalp caused her to tremble slightly. "Are you alright? I'm not hurting you, am I?" Zerrus shook her head, not wanting to strain herself by speaking with how much she's locked up being near her.

 

 "some of those anti-monster rebels have been harrassing her for the past week or so. she refuses to give in to the threats and continues to support us." Sans explained for Zerrus.

 

 "So she's hardheaded?" The goat woman snorted at her poorly placed pun, causing Zerrus to cover her mouth and stiffle her laughter. "I'm sorry, sweetheart. I know, it was a bad time to make a pun."

 

 "N-No. It's fine." Zerrus mumbled, the tingling feeling on her scalp disipating. She rubbed the back of her head to see that the bleeding has stopped. She noticed a small child in a pale blue sweater with a pink stripe standing in the doorway. Zerrus immediately recognized the child as the ambassador for the monsters, Frisk.

 

 "heya, kid. how ya been?" Sans greeted Frisk, ruffling their hair a bit. Frisk signed to Sans, a smile drawn on their little face.

 

 *I've been well. How about you?*

 

 "ahh y'know me, frisk. i'm doin' just fine." Frisk caught sight of Zerrus and looked over to Sans with a smug look. "what?"

 

 *Are you two dating?* Zerrus froze up at the mere thought of them being together and watched as Sans started laughing at her reaction.

 

 "nah, kiddo. she's just a friend who's going through a rough time." Frisk stepped over to Zerrus and looked up at her, signing to Zerrus with a confused look on their face.

 

 *Want to talk about it?*

 

 "I appreciate the concern, Frisk, but I'm alright. You know that anti-monster group called HAM?" Frisk nodded. "Well, that group has been attacking me. They think I'm a monster and want to prove a point."

 

 "That is messed up. What is your name?" The goat woman standing behind her asked.

 

 "Zerrus Teknianu. And you?"

 

 "Toriel. It is a pleasure to meet you, though I wish it would be under better circumstances."

 

 "hey tori?" Sans started to ask.

 

 "Yes, Sans?"

 

 "i brought zerrus here to learn how to use healing magic. her body heals up really fast on its own, but i was hoping you could teach her to heal herself when bad things like this happen."

 

 "I understand, but let's first let the magic settle. I could feel the magic inside her want to break free at the pain." Toriel sauntered over to Frisk and pat their shoulder. "Keep an eye on her, Sans." The both of them left the room, leaving Sans and Zerrus alone in the room.

 

 "You wanted to ask me something before?" Zerrus asked, settling on the couch with her arms resting on her knees. "What was it?"

 

 "yeah. i wanted to ask about why you wear those strange ear pieces." Sans responded as he took a seat next to Zerrus. "is that part of your mutation you mentioned before?"

 

 "Kinda. I only wear these ear defenders to hide them. Dat loves them, but I don't feel comfortable with them."

 

 "can you show me?" Zerrus tensed up a bit, her hands gripping on her knees almost painfully. "if you don't want to, you don't have to."

 

 "It's not that. Just... I need you to unhook them. They clip in the back." Zerrus turned her back to Sans pointing at the blue strip on the metal piece close to the back of her head. "I can't really reach them. Just... try not to move the dial."

 

 He hesitantly reached at the back of her head, shifting her hair aside to allow him access to the clips. His finger barely grazed the clip catching a few strands of hair. Zerrus squeaked quietly, Sans drew his hand back. "sorry."

 

 "I'm fine. My hair just tugged." Sans nodded and continued to unhook the ear defenders. He almost gasped at the sight of her now uncovered ears. Zerrus sighed and drooped her shoulders. "Yeah... I got pointed ears. Only humans who go through a cosmetic surgery to change their appearance get them."

 

 "it's strange... the way humans are held together with all this flesh."

 

 "I could say the same for you with how your bones stay together." Zerrus took the ear defenders from Sans's hands, staring at them. "Y'know... maybe I could adjust to having these ears. Beats wearing these all the time. Can you imagine how annoying these things are if I brush the dial the wrong way?"

 

 Toriel and Frisk walked back into the room, the young child was trying to keep their composure at the sight of Zerrus and Sans so close together. "I am sorry, I couldn't help but overhear your conversation. Are you unhappy with the way you look?" Toriel apologized, her hand closing on Frisk's even more.

 

 Zerrus shook her head, pushing herself up to her feet and skimming her hand near her previous injury. "Hey, what doesn't kill you makes you stronger. But no, I am just unhappy with the way I keep changing." The sound of someone sending her a text brought Zerrus's attention to her cellphone. She strode over to Frisk and pat their shoulder. "I gotta go,

Frisk. It was nice meeting you in person."

 

 *Will I get to see you again?* Frisk asked, their dark brown eyes looking directly into Zerrus's red eyes.

 

 "Of course. I just have to take care of something." She stepped by Sans and dailed someone. Zerrus waited until the door closed behind her to speak. "Yeah?"

 

 "Zerrus, what los hin status? (Zerrus, what is your status?)" spoke a girl on the other end in an old language.

 

 "Ni pruzah. Murahv los accelerating. (Not good. Alteration is accelerating.)" Zerrus responded in the same langauge. "Fos ausul koros wah zey? Zu'u mindok hi mindok atruk! Stiis nii! (What the hell is happening to me? I know you know something! Spill it!)"

 

 "Zu'u nis fun hi naan, ni voth tol skelly ful strin naal. (I can't tell you anything, not with that skelly so close by.)"

 

 "Bozok Draaf! Rok lost drehlaan nid nuz hiif zey ruzun pah daar gon! Ahrk kolost hi ? Ahnok ko vokun. (BULL SHIT! He has done nothing but help me since all this started! And where have you been? Hiding in the shadows.)"

 

 "Tolro ganog! Zu'u fen ni hon daar nol aanwo med hi! Dreh hi orin emtiin nunon vir rutkei hi los? Waan hi laan wah, hi vust al lein. (That's enough! I won't hear this from someone like you! Do you even realize just how dangerous you are? If you wanted to, you could destroy the world.)" Zerrus remained silent, her gaze not shifting from her glancing towards her phone. Her eye pulsed a blue flare and a small growl rumbled from her. "Dahmaan tol us hi tinvaak tir do straag ontzos. (Remember that before you speak out of turn again.)"

 

 With that, the person on the other end hung up on her. Zerrus sighed and stuffed her phone in her pocket, leaning over the railing to let the breeze blow through her hair and against her cheek. "Dammit, Soothing Sky. You are pretty intent on makin' me regret ever trusting you... aren't you?" Zerrus mumbled to herself, closing her eyes to trail off in thought.

 

 Just before she lost herself in thought, Sans tapped her shoulder to get her attention. Zerrus wheeled around with a gasp to see him standing there with a concerned look on his face. "you alright? sounded like a pretty heated conversation." he asked her. Zerrus grumbled a bit and turned her back to Sans, clearly irritated by the fact that he was nearby when she was talking with Soothing Sky.

 

 "I'm fine. Just a bit pissed off."

 

 "i could tell. you looked like you were about to explode."

 

 "Might as well have... It took everything I had to not explode." Sans stepped over to lean against the railing beside Zerrus, waiting for her to continue. Catching the hint, Zerrus grumbled and leaned slightly away from him. "How much of that did you hear?"

 

 "well... almost all of it, but i couldn't understand what you were saying. what language was that?"

 

 She refused to answer Sans, simply turning to look away from him and stare out at the surroundings. Zerrus was always someone to keep to herself ever since she was young. It was nice of Sans to be concerned about her, but it has been hard for her to allow any male close to her in a family/friend manner.

 

 "Look Sans, there's something you should know. I don't tend to allow ANY MAN in to my life. There's reason behind that, and I feel like this is something you should know since you're right outside the barrier I've put up around my heart." Zerrus began to explain. She motioned for Sans to step closer, showing that she was comfortable enough to even explain it. "A few years ago, back when I first met Dat, I was tasked with protecting someone important to me. This was back when my dad was still alive and I didn't really have any legal say so in who I wanted to work with. So, I was forced to move from my hometown to a new one."

 

 "why didn't you have a say?" Sans asked, a confused look drawn on his face.

 

 "No idea really... Though... most of my past is a huge blur. A lot of my memories were repressed, and I've been doing everything in my power to remember. What I do remember are just scraps. But, when I moved away I had to adjust to this new man as a partner. At first, I was happy. He was nice. But... things changed."

 

 "changed?"

 

 Zerrus inhaled sharply, clenching her fists and biting her lip in an attempt to keep herself from spiraling into pure rage. "That... that bastard betrayed us. He murdered so many innocent people and set me up. Trust me... I wanted to kill him right then and there. But... the sensible side of me chose not to. It was not long after that mess that he turned his direct attacks on me. My dad did everything in his power to help me, to bring me back to Merry Vale."

 

 She stepped off of the porch the picked up a rock, tossing it into the air and catching it again. Zerrus spotted a can of soda, presumably empty based on the fact it was thrown carelessly on the ground. "That son of a bitch killed my brother!"

 

 Zerrus threw the rock viciously at the can, splitting it in half with a twinkle of magic radiating off the rock. "I didn't know it at the time... I was told that he was on his way to see me when he was ambushed by bandits. Shortly after that, dad passed away from lack of life magic. I had no one left. Except for HIM."

 

 She balled her fists, a shockwave a magic exploding around her. "And when I went to him for comfort, he turned me away. He said that I wasn't worth his time or efforts! That I was just a burden!"

 

 "Did it even matter to him? No. Not one bit. He was more focused on his 'Master' than the sanity of his most powerful guard. People wonder why I get pissed off when people ask about my past, especially regarding my dad. It's because when I think about the fact he's gone, I remember HIM. And I would rather die than to see his ugly mug again. THAT is why I refuse to let any man near me. Why it is so hard for me to trust. It's because of what he did to my brother, and to me."

 

 Sans sighed, walking over to Zerrus and hugging her tightly as tears began to run down her cheek in a mixture of anger and sadness. "it's okay. that monstrous excuse for a man is no longer in your life. and if he does decide to show up..." Sans trailed off his statment, his eyes going blank.  "h e 's  g o n n a  h a v e  a  b a d  t i m e..."

 

 "Damn right he is. If it's not just you who kicks his ass, it'll be me as well. He deserves it after all the shit he put us through."


	7. Manipulated

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After spilling her guts to Sans about her past and why it is so hard to trust, Zerrus ventures forth to Mt. Ebbott.

 

 2 weeks have passed since Zerrus had let Sans know about a part of her past, easing a constantly regenerating weight on her shoulders. She knew that it would build up once again, but didn't want Sans to see her break again. Zerrus growled to herself as the blurred memories of her past crept up beside her. She balled up her fist and slammed it into the tree she was sitting under.  
 

"Fuck's sake...! Why can't I remember?!" Zerrus shouted to herself, a few leaves from the tree fluttering down to the grass. She squinted at a vain attempt to see through the veil of her memories, barely making out anything. Zerrus could barely make out the blurred outline of a person in her memory, but couldn't tell if they were a man or a woman.

 

 Taking a deep breath she pulled her phone from her pocket and thumbed over to Sans's contact. Hesitating, she sent a text to him.

 

Zerrus:  
 Hey...

 

Sans:  
 somethin wrong?

 

Zerrus:  
 You can read me like a book huh? Yeah something IS wrong, but that isn't why I'm texting you. I need to talk to you. Face to face.

 

 Zerrus tucked her phone back into her pocket and pulled a knee up to her chest, wrapping her arms around it and hugging it closer. The sound of the air tearing around her brought her gaze up to see Sans standing in front of her with a dark look on his face. "Didn't feel like taking the conventional methods, eh?" Zerrus snickered, gesturing for Sans to take a seat next to her.

 

 "you never ask to speak face to face with me since that day you met frisk and toriel. what made you change your mind?" Sans asked as he sat down next to her and slung and arm over her. "things have been quiet lately without you around."

 

 "You think I don't know that?" Zerrus snapped at him, shrugging his arm off of her shoulders. She visibly tensed up at her own tone and cleared her throat. "S-sorry. Just been rather... irritable. Please don't take ANYTHING I say the wrong way."

 

 "is it that human thing alphys told me about?"

 

 "Eh?"

 

 "i think she said they were called menstrual cycles."

 

 "Oh! No. No it's not that. Besides... I'm not like most women on their periods. I tend to be quiet and just stick to myself even more than usual. I've just been plagued with more nightmares these past 2 weeks. Something about the last one seemed far too real."

 

 "I was in a lab... all sorts of mechanisms were dangling from the ceiling, the walls, even me. When I looked around, all I could see was a tall pale man. At least... that's what I could tell. My vision was very blurry, which that could only mean that it was a memory. It happens sometimes."

 

 Zerrus hugged her leg tighter and her hair stood up on its ends. She extended her left arm and held her palm open, a swirl of dark blue magic dancing around her fingertips. "If my memory served me right... it's THAT moment that gave me these powers. But my memories were sorta... sealed away."

 

 She closed her hand and the air seemed to shatter in front of her in blue shards of what looked like glass. The same blurred outlines she has seen in her memories danced along the shards. The glass-like pieces of the air disappeared with a burst of dark blue and red magic particles. Zerrus turned her head to see that Sans looked stunned, almost like he knew something about it.

 

 "Shocked?" Zerrus asked in a cocky tone. Sans gulped and beads of sweat started to dot his skull. He started to stutter nervously when she held up her hand and shook with laughter. "It's fine, dude. I am too. I've never had this type of magic before. The most I ever mastered was the occasional teleportation and mixing primary elements like fire and water into my attacks." 

 

 "really? damn kid, that's somethin' new. not even asgore has those types of abilities." Sans complimented, scratching his cheekbone.

 

 "Asgore? Who's that?"

 

 "oh. sorry, forgot that not all you humans know who our king is. the only diplomatic figure people tend to remember or even notice is frisk."

 

 "Hey... what was the Underground like anyways?"

 

 Sans's eyes went dark as he looked straight forward, a stern expression drawn on his face. Zerrus shifted uneasily at the negative emotions she was picking up from him. She shook her head and looked forward as well, losing herself in a train of thought.

 

 'Must've been hellish if he is making that face. If what I'm picking up is anything to go by. I guess I will ask him about it some other time...'

 

 "things weren't great... but, i have a secret codeword." Sans leaned over and whispered something in her ear. She reeled back and looked at him with a look of confusion.

 

 "Why are you telling me this?" Zerrus asked him.

 

 "i wish i had the time to tell you."

 

 Zerrus pushed herself to her feet, her vision blurring and spotting white from standing up. She staggered immediately and shutting her eyes tightly. When she reopened her eyes she was standing in the backyard, but Sans was missing. Dat stepped out from inside the house and frantically looked around.

 

 "Tech, what the fuck was that?!" he panicked, darting over to Zerrus. 

 

 "I-I don't know! Hey Dat... do you feel younger?" Zerrus asked, looking over her own body and noticing almost immediately that her hair was much shorter and more like a burr. He shrugged his shoulders slightly and noticed that the magic marking he had engraved on the back of his hand was faded. "Did we go back in time?"

 

 "Hell if I know, Tech. Wait... where's Sans? I saw him back here before we were blinded by that light."

 

 Zerrus's eyes darkened in hue and her face scrunched up in rage. She started growling quietly and looked up at Dat. "Dat... I'm heading to Mt. Ebott. If what I suspect is true, then I'll find Sans and the others there. SOMETHING happened to the timeline and I'm gonna find out what."

 

 He nodded and she stormed by him, grabbing a black tank top and grey pants. She picked up a simple light grey bandana with blue flames and tied it around her head. Zerrus zipped up a pair of black boots and put on a pair of black fingerless gloves. She passed by Dat and nodded to him.

 

 "Be careful out there. Don't go gettin' yourself killed, Tech." Dat muttered, white and black feathers swirling around him and her. His right eye flashed orange and she was thrown through time and space, the black emptiness engulfing her and hurtling her towards the designated target.

 

 Zerrus landed in front of the legendary entrance to the Underground. She looked down the hole and gulped hard. All that could be seen down the hole was sheer darkness and a few vines that stretched down. Taking the logical route, Zerrus grabbed one of the vines and slowly rapelled herself down the cliff walls.

 

 The vine she was using to hold her weight and guide herself safely down snapped, sending Zerrus crashing to the depths of the mountain. She landed with a heavy thwump, sending a few golden flower petals floating up and fluttering back down. Wincing at her failed landing, Zerrus rubbed the back of her neck.

 

 "Welp... gotta add THAT to the botched landing counter." she mumbled to herself, taking in the surroundings. Pushing herself back to her feet, Zerrus walked down the only corridor that she could see.

 

 She stopped when she noticed a golden flower with a face sitting in the middle of an open room. "Howdy! I'm Flowey! Flowey the Flower!" greeted the innocent looking flower. "You must be new to the Underground. Golly! You must be so confused!"

 

 "No kidding... hey, Flowey. Has anybody passed through here recently?"

 

 "Nope! Just you! Guess I need to show ya how things work down here."

 

 "I'm well aware of how-." Zerrus was interrupted as the room blackened and her color was drained to white. She looked over to the golden flower to see that he too was the same. The same bluish-red heart she was shown before hovered in front of her chest.

 

 "See that? That is your SOUL. The very culmination of your being. Your SOUL starts off weak, but can become strong through LV."

 

 'LV?! Shit! This fuckin' flower is evil if he is trying to convince me to use my Level of Violence!'

 

 "What does LV stand for? Why LOVE of course! You want some LOVE, dontcha?"

 

 "I'm not fallin' for it. I know that LOVE is an acronym. It stands for Level of Violence. No matter what you say... no matter what you do... I WON'T give in." Zerrus snapped, her soul shaking violently as if it were equally enraged.

 

 "Hee hee hee. You idiot... Don't you know that in this world it's KILL or BE KILLED?" White pellets hovered around her, the possibility of dodging or escaping was thrown out the window. "DIE!"

 

 Zerrus started to shrink down as the pellets drew closer and closer to her. Not knowing how much it would hurt, she feared her demise was close at hand. Suddenly, a small white flame materialized next to Flowey and knocked him away from her, color returning to her surroundings once more.

 

 "Such a terrible creature, torturing such a poor, innocent youth." spoked a familiar soothing voice Zerrus had heard 2 weeks before. "Hello, my child. I am Toriel, caretaker of the RUINS."

 

 'No... does... does she not remember me?! What the fuck happened?!'

 

 "P-pleasure to meet you, Toriel. I am Zerrus." Zerrus stuttered out, trying to fight back her fears. Toriel took Zerrus's hand and, without warning, started guiding her through the Ruins.

 

 Slightly confused at the situation she had found herself in, Zerrus decided to play along and hope that nothing bad happens to Frisk if they come here. Toriel stopped in front of a cute house and tussled Zerrus's hair. "This will be your new home. Please, make yourself comfortable."

 

 Zerrus sat down near the fireplace and let the comforting flames help ease her aching muscles from the fall. She smelled something sweet coming from the kitchen and her stomach grumbled. Quickly pushing it aside, Zerrus went back to thinking.

 

 'I had heard that if a human has enough determination, they can manipulate time and defy their own deaths. Frisk was determined to get back to the surface and managed to free monsters in the process. No doubt in my mind that they died a few times, given how dangerous some of the monsters I had met could be.'

 

 'Did Frisk die and cause the entire timeline to backtrack a whole year?'

 

 "Here you go, my child. I baked a butterscotch-cinnamon pie to celebrate your arrival. I do hope you will find it to your liking." Toriel spoke calmly as she handed Zerrus a slice of the sweet smelling pastry.

 

 "I'm sure I will, if my nose has anything to say about it." Just at that moment, Zerrus's stomach rumbled loudly. "And apparently my stomach too."

 

 Toriel snorted and started giggling at her remark, causing Zerrus to start laughing at her own expense. "I would say so! Seems like they want to say something!"

 

 Moments of silence ticked by as Zerrus took small bites of the pie, savoring its flavor and silencing her growling stomach. She looked over to Toriel, who was reading a book in a soft looking chair. Standing up, Zerrus stepped up to Toriel and rung her hands nervously.

 

 "Is something troubling you, dear?" Toriel asked in concern, noticing her uneasy posture.

 

 "I'm going to be blunt with you, Toriel. As much as I'd want to stay here... I need to get back to the surface. My husband must be worried sick." Zerrus explained, looking up to the sky.

 

 "I... I have to do something."

 

 Toriel stood up and hastily left the room, heading towards the staircase leading to a basement. Zerrus quickly followed behind her, noticing Toriel standing still in a violet corridor. "Toriel, what's wrong?"

 

 "Don't you realize that if you leave the Ruins, Asgore will kill you and take your soul?" Fear shot through Zerrus's eyes at the revelation, not wanting to confront death directly and see his full power. "Go upstairs."

 

 Toriel continued down the corridor, Zerrus hesitating to follow. She stopped behind Toriel and saw a giant stone door before her. She knew right away that this was the only way out to the rest of the underground. Grunting with discomfort at the situation, Zerrus stepped forward.

 

 "You want to leave so badly? Very well then. Prove to me you are strong enough to survive." Toriel challenged, causing the room to slowly fade to black and Zerrus's own color was lost. She watched in a familiar fear as her soul lurched out of her chest and hovered. Zerrus steeled herself, her soul pulsating red, orange, and blue.

 

 "Toriel, I don't want to fight you." Zerrus shouted in a stern voice.

 

 Toriel didn't answer, instead she lobbed a few white fireballs at her direction. Zerrus practically danced around the flames, bobbing and weaving through each attack until she stopped. Zerrus took this moment to catch her breath, finding the words she could use to get through Toriel.

 

 "Do YOU realize that if you try to keep me here, you'll end up hurting rather than protecting me?! I need to find the truth, and the only way to do that is to proceed!" Zerrus shuddered in anger, Toriel's eyes widening and then drooping at her words.

 

 A few more fireballs shot forward, smacking into her chest and sending her rolling on the ground from the impact. Zerrus staggered to her feet and wobbled. This time she didn't hesitate to blast Toriel with an energy shockwave, causing her to stagger.

 

 "Toriel... I REFUSE to fight you! However... if you want me to prove I am strong enough to survive, then you'll have to feel it for yourself: how strong I really am!" Zerrus grumbled, throwing her hand back and shattering the air behind her. A ball of energy fluttered from the crack in the air and hovered behind her.

 

 Zerrus threw the ball of energy and it burst in front of Toriel, blue and red particles raining down on her white fur. She stared in awe at the magic, fiddling with a small chunk and looking up at Zerrus. Zerrus huffed and snapped her fingers, the magic rising from her fur and shifting form into a pair of wings.

 

 "I don't have it in me to harm others. What you felt in that moment was fear of death. But I know now just who and WHAT I am. You were afraid of my magic, afraid of what it would do. What I know is that my magic cannot harm others unless I harbor resentment to the target. You've treated me like you were a mother to me. I respect that. But, I can't stay. Despite your efforts to keep me here, you KNOW that deep down you can't keep me here."

 

 "My child... if you leave here..." Toriel paused and took a shakey breath. "No... no, you are right. I cannot keep you here. I can feel it... you are our hope. That moment your magic dusted over me... the feeling you have... You are hurt. And it is not my place to keep you here, only to hurt you more. My loneliness... my fears... for you, my child, I will put them aside."

 

 The color of the room returned to normal, and Zerrus watched her soul float back into her chest. Toriel crouched down and hugged Zerrus tightly, tears falling on the back of her tank top. She returned the hug tightly, letting the motherly goat monster cry. She knew what she was feeling: fear of losing one you care about.

 

 "Please... be safe." Toriel sobbed, hugging Zerrus just barely as she stood up and shuffled away. Just as she turned to see Toriel walk away, she felt a cold breeze shoot through her body. On instinct, Zerrus summoned her soul and grazed its surface with her fingertips.

 

 "Dat... you there?" Zerrus asked into her soul.

 

 'Yeah. How's the situation down there?' Dat's disembodied voice responded.

 

 "It ain't good. Toriel doesn't remember shit and Frisk is nowhere to be seen. Not sure what the fuck is goin' on, but we need to find out and FAST."

 

 'Shit... want me to come down there with you?'

 

 "No. Stay on the surface and try to figure out what the fuck happened. I know you saw that light, so try to find the source. I need to find Sans."


	8. Duo

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The world had reset, and now Zerrus must journey through the Underground in search of Frisk.

 

 Zerrus trudged outside of the Ruins, snow crunching under her feet. She followed a distinct pathway dug into the snow, passing by different branches and snow covered bushes in her path. Zerrus stepped over a particularly large branch and pressed on, hugging herself tightly to trap bodyheat.

 

 The sound of a branch snapping behind her caused her to turn around almost violently. Fear overtook her as she felt a malicious aura hovering in the air around her. "Fuck. Not this shit! What's goin' on here?!" Zerrus yelled out into the forest.

 

 Not getting a response after a couple minutes, Zerrus hugged her chest tightly and continued down the pathway. She squinted to see through the veil of snow that blinded her, spying a gateway over a chasm. The bars of the gateway were far apart, making it capable to simply walk through, but the bridge was covered in snow and ice.

 

 Remembering the time she tried to step on a slightly iced wooden walkway at her old school, Zerrus chuckled quietly to herself. "Don't wanna do a split again..." she mumbled to herself. Zerrus shifted her stance as she thought of how she could cross the chasm with an icy bridge.

 

 The sound of snow crunching under someone's weight brought her attention behind her. She froze as the footsteps stopped directly behind her. "H U M A N." growled a deep voice. Taking a deep breath, Zerrus turned around to see a familiar blue hoodie.

 

 "Skeleton." she replied cockily.

 

 Zerrus was expecting Sans to laugh at her remark, but instead found herself held in place by a sudden increase in gravity. She and Sans exchanged glances as he held his arm outwards, palm up. His left eye was glowing cyan, indicating that he was using his magic on her.

 

 "Uhh... Sans? What's-?" Zerrus was interrupted as Sans threw his hand up, sending her in the same motion. She hovered there for a moment, the small skeleton shaking slightly.

 

 "how do you know my name?" he practically demanded to her.

 

 Zerrus stammered as his eyes practically burned into her. Gulping hard, she clenched her fists and willed her magic to surround her. Golden orbs hovered around her chest, arms, and legs, wrapping them in an etheral glow. Sans's eye stopped glowing and gravity returned to Zerrus as her orbs gently sent her back to the ground.

 

 "Sans, why are you being so... violent?! What the hell did I do?" Zerrus shouted, a few orbs shaking behind her in reaction to her rage.

 

 "you know what you did. no... what you are DOING." Sans mumbled.

 

 "You aren't making any sense, boneboy. I came down here to find you, and this is how you react?! What the fuck, man?!"

 

 "why? so you can take away everything i care about? to force me to watch you kill my brother, over and over again?! don't give me that whole 'i'm just an innocent child' shit! i can see through your lies!"

 

 Sans shoved forward, bones shooting out from the snow and hurtling towards Zerrus. She sidestepped to the left to dodge a few bones and jumped upwards to avoid the remainder. Suddenly, the same intensity of gravity she felt before returned, bringing her back into the snow.

 

 Zerrus groaned as she stood back up from the violent shove. "Not cool, Sans. Why are you being such an asshole?" she grumbled, dusting off her shoulders. A tug on her chest pulled her down to her knees, leaving her at the mercy of an enraged monster.

 

 "me? what about you? you've toyed with us like this is all just a game to you. do you have no decency for life? or do you just care about your own amusement?" he growled audibly at her, mere inches from her face.

 

 "THAT'S ENOUGH!" A bright golden light shot out from Zerrus's body and sent Sans skidding to a halt a few feet away from her. She stumbled back up to her feet and glared at him, her left eye blazing with the same blue magic with red licking the top of the flames. "Life IS like a game. There are people out there who manipulate people's lives to meet their own agenda. However..."

 

 Zerrus swung her right arm back, her soul lurching from her chest and hovering behind her. She brought her left arm up and outstretched her fingers, magic building up in her palm. "I'm NOT one of those people! My life has been manipulated too, you ignorant asswipe! I came down here cause I was worried about you guys! And what do I get?"

 

 The magic in her palm swirled down her arm and wrapped around her body. The same magic shrouded her form, blinding Sans as he prepared another attack. The light receeded and Zerrus was standing there wearing her bodysuit with armor platings. The plates radiated the same magic and coursed with the colors of her soul.

 

 Her soul morphed into the spirit wolf she summoned before, snarling at Sans and curling around Zerrus's legs. "I get my fucking ass handed to me by my friend! I won't let this slide so easily, bonebag!"

 

 Sans stalled at her words, his magic flickering. He chuckled darkly and snapped his fingers, two of his blasters hovering behind him. "nice try, kid. you're even more of a megalomaniac than i thought. you even taught yourself magic." Sans's eyes darkened as Zerrus grunted in reaction to his statement. "but... someone with your Level Of Violence doesn't deserve to even live. all you've done is take. look what that's brought you."

 

 Bones surrounded Zerrus and her conjured wolf, leaving them looking around frantically. Sans chuckled even more, his left eye flashing more intensely. The blasters opened their maw and a white hot energy boiled inside. "Sans?" Zerrus shuddered.

 

 "it's a beautiful day outside. birds are singing. flowers are blooming."

 

 "Oh... fuck..."

 

 "on days like these, kids like you..." The bones closed in even more around Zerrus, her wolf whimpered slightly at the lack of space. "should be burning in hell."

 

 The blasters shot the white hot magic out at the two trapped souls. Zerrus's familiar barked out, just before the magic connected with her chest. The burning magic melted her soul into a molted shape. The wolf spirit howled sharply, the air rippling around them.

 

 Zerrus watched in terror as her soul cracked and began to split apart, the conjured armor and spirit wolf dissolving. Suddenly, Dat rushed out from behind her and rushed at Sans, slamming his grimoire down. "Tech, just stay put!" Dat shouted as he deflected multiple bones flying towards him with energy projectiles.

 

 "Dat, don't get so cocky! Look what he did to me! He'll do the same to you!" Zerrus shouted at him. He scoffed and summoned a spell circle around himself and Zerrus. She felt her energy intertwine with Dats, her wounds slowly starting to close.

 

 Dat snapped his fingers and the two spell circles joined together. The combined patterns shot forward and anchored Sans to the ground. "Listen to me, Sans. Do you even know who the fuck I am?" Zerrus growled, limping towards him.

 

 "an anomaly. one that doesn't belong in this timeline." Sans curtly responded. Zerrus grunted at the rude comment and waved Dat to step back.

 

 "No. I..." she leaned in closer to him and smirked menacingly. "am the legendary fartmaster."

 

 Sans blunk a few times and started to shake. Zerrus heard him snicker quietly, then burst into laughter. Dat steped up to Zerrus and placed a firm hand on her shoulder. He leaned in and mumbled, "What the hell? Why would you say that?!"

 

 "Shut up! Just watch!" Zerrus whispered back to him. Sans slapped his knee and wiped a tear from his eye, catching his breath.

 

 "damn, kid. that's just... wow." Sans sighed, leaning against the gateway and looking at the duo. "so... you two weren't affected by the reset."

 

 "It seems that way. Now... why the hell did you choose THAT as a codeword? Not gonna lie, I felt like an idiot saying that just so you wouldn't kill me." Zerrus crossed her arms and Dat pulled her closer.

 

 "yeah... sorry. you have high LOVE so i was afraid. if the reset had affected your memory, you would've killed us with just the flick of a wrist."

 

 "Well, regardless of your reasons for your actions, you're lucky that Zerrus told me to hold back." Dat responded, holding Zerrus closer to his chest to keep her warm.

 

 "Wait... Dat? How did you get here so fast? You were up on the surface." Zerrus pondered, staring at Dat with a skeptical expression.

 

 "Not sure, actually. Yo Sans!" Dat glared at Sans and caught his attention. "You're Mr. I-Know-Everything-About-Magic. How did I get here so quickly anyways?"

 

 Sans chuckled and extended an arm out towards them, Zerrus flinching visibly and shrinking further into Dat's arms. "look, i know i screwed up. and i know that is the last way

you would want to be introduced to someone, but please trust me." Sans suaded.

 

 Zerrus huffed and stepped closer to Sans, leaving Dat's death grip on her shoulders. Sans grazed her chest with his fingers and her soul cautiously left its home. In the center of her normal blue and red colored soul lie a smaller yellow, green, and orange one. Zerrus stuttered at the sight of the anomaly and looked over to Dat.

 

 Dat instinctively pulled his soul free from his chest and noted the same anomaly, only reversed. He looked up at Sans and flashed an irritated look at him. "You got 5 seconds to explain or I'll fucking detatch your limbs." Dat threatened.

 

 "your soul bond, this is the physical proof of it." Sans started to explain.

 

 "Wait just a damn minute. How come I didn't see this before?" Zerrus asked.

 

 "when you were about to die, your soul called for help. being linked with dat through a bond, his soul reacted to your cry for help. due to that, dat teleported directly behind you and sprung into action."

 

 Zerrus turned and faced Dat, a skeptical look sketched on her face. He caught sight of the stare and coughed roughly. "S-so my soul made me teleport to her to save her. Why did that happen exactly? We don't love each other in any conventional method."

 

 "Yeah, we're only married cause we were social pariahs just cause of our magical capabilities. The marriage was a way to keep our magic in check. So why is his soul acting so crazy all of a sudden?" Zerrus pondered.

 

 Sans suddenly rushed forward, clamping a hand on Zerrus's mouth and looking over his shoulder. Dat snarled loudly at the sudden movement when Sans shushed him. "my brother, papyrus will be coming over here shortly. see, he's a human hunting fanatic."

 

 Sans grabbed both Dat's and Zerrus's arm and rushed them across the bridge, shoving them behind a sentry station. They took the hint and ducked down as far as they could.

 

"SANS!" yelled a nasally voice.

 

 "sup bro?"

 

 "YOU KNOW WHAT'S 'SUP' BROTHER! IT HAS BEEN EIGHT DAYS AND YOU STILL HAVEN'T..." Papyrus stalled and shifted in the snow slightly. Zerrus held her breath and Dat froze in place. "SANS... SOMETHING IS... STRANGE."

 

 "what do you mean, paps?"

 

 Zerrus let out the breath she was holding in and pointed to a spot a few feet away, hidden in the brush and out of sight. Dat went to stand up, hitting his head on the corner of the station. "AUGHAHAHAHAHAHA!" he cackled in pain.

 

 Sans and Papyrus immediately turned and looked over to where Dat was hiding. He scuttled out from his hiding spot and rubbed the top of his head, staring at the two skeletons now staring back. "SANS, IS THAT... A HUMAN?" Papyrus gleamed.

 

 Dat laughed nervously and stepped up to Papyrus, holding out his hand. "Name's Dat. I came down here with my wife." Dat reintroduced, trying to keep himself from blurting out the fact they had met before. Zerrus crawled out from under the station and brushed the snow off of her pants.

 

 "Hey there. My name is Zerrus. We heard that there was a powerful magical barrier in place in the depths of Mt. Ebott, one that kept monsters trapped. So, we came down here to dispel it." Zerrus explained, opening her palm and letting a tiny orb of magic float there.

 

 "Legend has it that there were 7 mages who summoned the barrier to trap monsters underground. Dat and I are going to rectify that and hopefully make peace with monsters for humanity's mistakes."

 

 "While we can't apologize for the acts of our ancestors, we hope that what we do now will show that not all humans are heartless." Dat continued for Zerrus, slinging and arm around her and hovering a similar orb of magic in his other hand. "Will you let us pass and journey to the barrier?"

 

 Papyrus remained staring at the couple, while they glanced over to Sans. Sans nodded to them and finally broke the silence. "whadya say, paps? i think we should let them go on through."

 

 "HUMANS, I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL LET YOU PASS. BUT ON ONE CONDITION!" Papyrus responded. Dat and Zerrus grimaced at each other in anticipation for whatever the condition would be. "ONE OF YOU MUST ADVANCE THROUGH MY PUZZLES! THE OTHER WILL BE WATCHED BY MY BROTHER, SANS. PROVIDED HE ACTUALLY DOES HIS JOB..."

 

 "Dat... I think you should do the puzzles. You know how much I hate them. Besides... Sans and I need to talk." Zerrus whispered to Dat. He crossed his arms and tapped his foot.

 

 "Tech, that's kinda out of the picture here. I mean, he did try to kill you." Dat replied.

 

 "I know, I know. But, I honestly can't blame him too harshly. Both of our LOVE is 90. Hell, I'd be threatened by that alone as well. Just... trust me."

 

 "Fine... but if your soul sends another distress call, I WILL dislocate every bone that is his body." Dat huffed and turned towards Papyrus. "I'll go through your puzzles, Papyrus. I'm sure my wife will be in safe hands..."

 

 "Yo, Dat! Be careful out there. Some of the paths may be coated in ice."

 

 "Ah, don't worry, Techy. I won't do a split, unlike you." Dat started walking in the direction Papyrus was headed before Zerrus could respond.

 

 She turned and faced Sans, her expression dark and annoyed. "Listen up, boneboy. I may not be one to hold a grudge, but what you did was something I won't forget any time soon. Be glad it's ME who stayed behind and not Dat."

 

 "i hope that you can forgive me for this whole mess." Sans mumbled, scratching the back of his skull.

 

 "Oh, I forgive. I said I wouldn't forget. Huge difference there. Now, know anyplace we can go to chat so I don't freeze my ass off?"

 

 "yeah. come with me. i know a shortcut."


	9. Rebirth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sans had effectively kicked Zerrus's ass, only to have her remember the timelines. She's now in charge of finding Frisk as well as breaking the barrier in hopes of bringing them back.

 

 Dat had finally managed to traverse through the endless stream of Papyrus's puzzles and made it into the nearby village of Snowdin. He buried his hands in his orange hoodie and managed to trudge through the snow towards the familiar bar known as Grillby's. Dat sighed and finally felt the cold winter air ripping through him.

 

 He pushed open the door and kicked the snow off of his orange sneakers. Dat immediately noticed Sans and Zerrus sitting at the bar, talking. He huffed quite audibly and stepped up to the two of them. "Oh! Dat, you got through Papyrus's puzzles alright?" Zerrus inquired.

 

 "Yeah... now I got at least 3 pounds of snow in my underwear. It's not comfy. At all." Dat replied snarkily.

 

 "so my bro's puzzles were snow problem for ya. that's good to hear." Sans punned. Zerrus was in mid-drink when he casually threw that pun out there, causing her to choke.

 

 She doubled over, laughing and choking at the joke. After a minute of struggling to get air into her lungs, she looked over at Sans and Dat with a smile. Tears dotted the corner of her eyes from the coughing fit.

 

 "I'm okay! Got a little cocoa in my nose from that, but I'm fine." Zerrus reassured, thumbing through her pants pocket to find a cloth. "Where's Papyrus now?"

 

 "Not sure, Tech. That rope bridge slowed me down quite a bit. Not big on rickety rope bridges over a freakin' canyon." Dat responded. He sat down next to Zerrus at the bar and was immediately handed a mug of hot chocolate. Reaching into his pocket for his wallet, Dat was stopped by Grillby shaking his head with a smile.

 

 "Thanks, man. So, what did you two talk about while I was out there being tortured by those puzzles?"

 

 "We were talking about the unusual nature of our soul bond. According to one of the books in the library on monster anatomy, a soul bond is only formed when both partners feel a strong yearning to be together. However, our bond is unique in the matter that we don't have that strong attraction." Zerrus started to explain.

 

 "This gem shard that Sans found in the mythology book has some sort of connection between you and me. I bet that the legend of the eternal guardians and this gem have something to do with this bond."

 

 "How? We aren't eternal guardians! The legend claims that the eternal guardians are humans born of no parents in a blue crystal. We were born the normal way! It's not like our mothers crammed a freakin' gem up their pants." Dat calmly remarked.

 

 Zerrus covered her mouth and nose and snorted loudly at the casual manner that Dat had spoken in regarding their origins. "Okay! Despite how crude that was, you hold a good point. I don't know HOW we could be eternal guardians, but think about it. How else do we have these powers? Why do our souls resonate the way they do? We don't feel attracted to each other like husband and wife, but as friends."

 

 Dat fell silent, his mouth opening and closing in a feeble attempt to find the words he wanted to say. "I... need to think about this for a while. 'Scuse meh."

 

 He stepped out of the bar and strolled through the snow, the fog getting thicker as he pressed onwards. He stopped short when he noticed a familiar silhouette in the fog. Dat immediately recognized the silhouette as Papyrus.

 

 "HUMAN. YOU MANAGED TO GET BY ALL OF MY PUZZLES. YOU TRULY ARE SOMETHING TO ADMIRE THEM AS MUCH AS ME. BUT I WAS GIVEN ORDERS TO CAPTURE YOU AND YOUR WIFE AND BRING YOU BACK TO THE CAPITAL." boomed the nasally and loud voice of Papyrus through the dense fog.

 

 "I WAS TOLD THAT YOU TWO ARE VERY DANGEROUS. THAT YOUR SOULS ARE WRACKED WITH NOTHING BUT LOVE. I WANT TO BE YOUR FRIEND, TRULY I DO. BUT I CAN'T LET YOU PASS."

 

 "Wh-what? Papyrus. You don't understand." Dat shouted back, his arms trembling from the words that left the kind and lovable skeleton.

 

 "MAYBE I DO. MAYBE I DON'T. BUT WHAT I DO KNOW IS THAT IF I AM TO JOIN THE ROYAL GUARD, I MUST CAPTURE A HUMAN. I AM SORRY."

 

 The area around Dat and Papyrus darkened, Dat's soul lurching out of his chest and hovering just in front of him. He took a deep breath and anchored himself in the snow. Reaching for the grimoire strapped to his back, Dat hesitated.

 

 'No. I can't fight him. This LOVE is not mine... and I have to prove that.'

 

 He let his hands fall and instead took another deep breath. "Papyrus, I won't fight you. But it doesn't mean I'm not going down without a fight!" Dat shouted, bouncing past a barrage of bones that flew by him. He skid to a halt just as a new layer of bones loomed over him.

 

 Bending backwards as if he were trying to limbo, Dat ducked under the onslaught of attacks. A blue bone shot forward, the oddly colored attack smacking directly into his chest. Dat keeled over and coughed, looking down at his soul. The smaller heart shone brightly and shook within the larger one.

 

 Meanwhile, Zerrus was thinking and sipping on her hot chocolate at Grillby's with Sans. A sudden jab of pain snapped her out of her thoughts. "HEAGHK!" she yelped, clutching her chest and breathing heavily.

 

 "you alright, kiddo?" Sans asked casually.

 

 Zerrus shuddered and a golden light slowly draped over her. She closed her eyes and focused as hard as she could to create a telepathic link to Dat. "What the hell are you doing? What hit you?"

 

 Silence answered her calls, the golden light receeding and the color in her face vanishing. "God dammit, Dat... be careful..." she muttered to herself as she felt her conscience slip away.

 

 Dat lunged back, avoiding a string of white and blue bones that shot out at him. The attacks were getting slower, but the damage output was far more than he expected. Suddenly, a familiar voice rang in his ears.

 

 'God dammit, Dat... be careful...'

 

 Stunned, Dat looked around frantically in an attempt to locate where that voice came from. The moment he was distracted was a crucial mistake on his part as a bone pierced right through his chest. Dat fell to his hands and knees, looking up at Papyrus as he stepped closer to him.

 

 "I AM SORRY, HUMAN. BUT IT IS THE ONLY WAY." Papyrus apologized, leaning down to scoop Dat up by his hood.

 

 "No..." Dat grumbled, pushing himself slowly back up to his feet. White and black feathers swirled around him as his magic slowly built up. "No, this isn't the only way! Tech and I only want to free monsters, and we are willing to sacrifice whatever we have to in order to do that! But this can't happen! I WON'T let this happen!"

 

 A shroud of feathers cloaked Dat, obscuring Papyrus's view of him. The feathers burst away revealing a brown haired, fox-eared and tailed half-human with orange eyes. Dat held his grimoire tightly in his hands, 3 black and 3 white feathers hovering around him. He jumped upwards, Papyrus sending a few bones towards the now airborne Dat.

 

 He huffed and sent a few magic bolts out at the bones, shattering them and landing in the snow. Dat landed gracefully and turned to look at Papyrus, his expression blank. "I know that you want to be in the Royal Guard... but this is one sacrifice I can't allow. I still won't fight you... but I DID say I wasn't going down without a fight."

 

 Papyrus smiled widely and extended his arm out towards Dat. "I MUST SAY, I AM IMPRESSED, HUMAN! I HONESTLY CAN BELIEVE YOU NOW THAT YOU MAY BE POWERFUL ENOUGH TO BREAK THE BARRIER! THOUGH, I SHOULD WARN YOU... UNDYNE, THE HEAD OF THE ROYAL GUARD, WILL TRY TO STOP YOU FROM CONTINUING."

 

 Just as Dat went to turn and return to Snowdin, his phone vibrated in his pocket. Pulling his phone out, his expression went dark as he read the text on the screen.

 

Tech  
u may want to head to grillbys. something weird happened.

 

 Dat immediately recognized that it wasn't Zerrus who had texted for two reasons. One: that Zerrus is punctual when texting. Two: she never really texts in the first place.

 

 Rushing over to Grillby's Dat barged through the door, noticing almost immediately that Zerrus wasn't in the bar. Huffing and puffing, he ran over to Sans and grabbed him by his shirt. "Where is she?!" he barked.

 

 "calm down, buddy." Sans calmly responded, completely unphased by the fact he was being held up off the floor.

 

 "Don't tell me to calm down! Where is she?!"

 

 "SHE IS AT OUR HOUSE." answered Papyrus as he opened the door leading into the bar. Dat turned around and let go of Sans, his ears flopped over and his tail flicking violently.

 

 "Take me there."

 

 Once inside the cozy home, Dat ran over to the green couch where Zerrus was laying. She was wrapped in a thick comforter and propped up on a pillow, her face pale and clammy. He growled and looked over at Sans with a glare. Sans shrugged at him and shook his head. "she just collapsed, bud. grillbz can vouch for me."

 

 "What happened?" Dat almost demanded, kneeling down and checking Zerrus's temperature to see if she was running a fever.

 

 "we were just sitting there when she yelped. this golden glow draped over her and suddenly, she's falling off of the barstool. the rest is kinda... fuzzy."

 

 "What do you mean 'fuzzy'? Did ya hit your head or..." Dat's attention drew back over to Zerrus. She let off a small whine and rolled over slightly, revealing a blue wolf ear that melded perfectly to her dark blue hair. Dat snickered and ducked his head, laughing quietly at the now obvious joke.

 

 Dat pulled up a chair and sat next to Zerrus, watching her carefully as she rest in her little blanket burrito. She tossed and turned occasionally and whined, no doubt from some sort of discomfort. Dat sighed and looked over to Sans and Papyrus, who were both staring at them in confusion and concern.

 

 "Sorry I snapped, man. It's just been a long day and I'm very confused." Dat spoke, turning to face them. "I mean, first I had to go through those puzzles... then I was gettin' beat up by a bunch of bones... now this? I guess I kinda blew my top off."

 

 "IT IS ALRIGHT, HUMAN. UH... FOX? FOX-HUMAN?" Papyrus pondered loudly.

 

 "Just call me Dat."

 

 "AH, RIGHT. ANYWAYS, IT IS FINE. I'M SURE I WOULD REACT THE SAME WAY IF I SAW SANS LIKE THAT AFTER A LONG DAY. BUT, WHAT DO YOU THINK HAPPENED TO..."

 

 "Zerrus."

 

 "...ZERRUS. WHAT DO YOU THINK HAPPENED TO HER TO CAUSE THIS SICKNESS?"

 

 "Well, Zerrus isn't the healthiest person I know. Far from it actually. If I had to guess, I'd say she probably got a pretty heavy dizzy spell from the transformation. However the hell that happened."

 

 "vertigo isn't fun. i know the feeling. so she should feel better after some rest?" Sans asked, leaning against the wall and stuffing his hands in his pockets.

 

 "Probably. But knowing her, she'll probably flip out once she sees the tail and ears. But hey! We've been through a lot worse over the years. I know we'll pull through this." Dat responded, turning his attention back to the sweating bundle. "I just hope that whatever happened doesn't cause us to screw things up royally."

 

 "WHY WOULD THAT HAPPEN? HOW WOULD ROYALTY 'SCREW' THINGS UP?" Papyrus pondered innocently.

 

 "uh, paps. he means that he hopes that whatever happened to them doesn't cause a huge problem for them." Sans clarified.

 

 "Yeah. I mean... we don't even know HOW we will break the barrier. We just know that we have the power to do it. I know it's confusing. Hell, it's HER idea. She could explain it better than me. I'm just along for the ride." Dat mumbled.

 

 "SO, ARE YOU SAYING WE SHOULD WAIT FOR HER TO WAKE UP BEFORE YOU CONTINUE TO THE CAPITAL?" Papyrus asked Dat, glancing over to Sans.

 

 "Well, it's not like I'm gonna be able to carry her around. She weighs a LOT more than she looks. I'm the magicman in all of this. SHE'S the muscle. So... I guess what I'm saying is, do you have a place I can sleep?"

 

 Papyrus and Sans exchanged looks and a few whispers, leaving Dat to divide his attention between them and Zerrus. He tucked the ear that popped free from the blanket burrito back into the bundle, a small smile drawing over Zerrus's sleeping face. Dat chuckled quietly as he remembered that Zerrus smiled when she got cozy in her sleep.

 

 "DAT, AFTER DISCUSSING THE MATTER, MY BROTHER AND I HAVE DECIDED THAT YOU CAN BUNK WITH ME. I AM SURE THAT ZERRUS WILL BE FINE. SHE JUST NEEDS TO SLEEP." Papyrus finally answered Dat. He nodded and pushed himself off of the chair, adjusting the blanket enough for Zerrus and watched as she buried herself a bit more.

 

 "Sounds like a plan. To be honest... I think these new additions to our bodies may be a sort of rebirth for us. Like something finally awoke in our souls and brought this out. The pressure was probably too much for her and it caused her to pass out." Dat mused over his thoughts.

 

 "SURELY YOU DO NOT WANT TO SLEEP IN THESE CLOTHES. THEY ARE DAMP FROM THE SNOW!"

 

 "Yeah no kidding..." Dat whispered to himself. "Well, I kinda don't have a change of clothes..."

 

 "you can wear a pair of mine. it should fit." Sans added.

 

 "What about Zerrus? Last time I checked, she was face down in snow when I came here." Sans coughed roughly and avoided looking at Dat. He immediately caught the message.

"Oh come on, man! You'd better hope she doesn't find out or she'll have a bone to pick with you."

 

 "AGH! YOU HAVE BADLY INFLUENCED DAT, SANS!" Papyrus stormed out of the room, leaving Sans laughing and Dat shooting a confused look.

 

 "What? What did he mea-... oh my god. I made a freakin' pun. You HAVE been an influence on us. We never made puns THIS often before we met you. Anyway, like I said; you'd better hope she doesn't find out that you changed her clothes. She'll likely kick your boney ass for doing that."

 

 "don't see why. i was only helping her out." Sans bluntly replied.

 

 "Yeah, but the thing is... Zerrus is very, uh, reserved. Hell, even I haven't seen her  naked or even in her underwear! And we're MARRIED! You gotta admit that THAT is a pretty self-conscious chick."

 

 "okay. i see your point. think you can do me a solid?"

 

 "Depends on what it is. Bear in mind that I still don't trust you since you kinda kicked her ass earlier."

 

 "i know. anyways, i was wondering if you could cover for me."

 

 "Cover for you? For wh- oh..." Dat shifted and looked over to Zerrus then back to Sans. "She DOES have a pretty bad temper... so with you having nearly killed her, and then undressing her... yeah she MAY want to kill ya if she found out. Fine... but you owe me."

 

 "deal, foxy." Sans winked and teleported away from Dat, leaving him sputtering at the joke aimed at his appearance.

 

 He sighed and turned back towards Zerrus. "How do we always end up getting into these messes?"


	10. Chasing Tales

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dat, having braved Papyrus's attack, returns to the skeleton brothers' house. Zerrus has fallen unconscious and Dat's magic has awoken, his magic seeping into hers.

 

 Darkness. Nothing but a shroud and silence. Zerrus hovered in the void, waiting for something. Her patience was rewarded when something soft rubbed against her cheek. Opening her eyes, she hyperventilated as she processed what the hell just touched her.

 

 Her magic sparked slightly as something else touched her side, right along the scar. Zerrus jolted forward, her eye flashing brightly. The first thing she noticed was her soul, fluttering helplessly in front of her. Zerrus went to reach for her soul when a sudden shock jarred her backwards.

 

 She growled at the pain and shot a quick glance around her surroundings. She immediately spotted a shadow, one that made her blood run cold.

 

 "Sans! What the fuck is going on here?" Zerrus yelled out, hoping her voice could reach him through the silence.

 

 A disturbing laugh caused her entire body to stiffen, her eyes widening in terror. "Now that's a name I haven't heard in a long time." The shadow stepped closer to Zerrus, her body frozen in fear. "Seems you have acquired a new soul. It seems my research was far from accurate regarding you humans."

 

 "Research...?" Zerrus grumbled and shook with anger. She attempted to headbutt the figure as he stood mere inches from her, but only hit air.

 

 "Still as defiant as ever I see. Heh heh heh. It doesn't matter. You have already proven to be quite the pet."

 

 "Bite me bitch." Zerrus spat, her eyes narrowing on the shadow before her. She heard an obvious huff of irritation as she was forced to stare directly at the figure, the fog fading around him.

 

 His eyes were hollow, a crack stretching from his left socket up and one from his right down to his jaw. A creepy smile was etched on to his pale face, disturbing Zerrus and causing all of her senses to suddenly go haywire in fear.

 

 "That's no way to speak to your master, pet." he taunted, wrapping a hand around her throat and cutting off airflow. Zerrus coughed very roughly and a magic shockwave sprung out, knocking her attacker away from her.

 

 Zerrus quickly looked behind her, spotting her conjured wolf snarling and baring her teeth at the strange monster. "I'm nobody's pet. Now tell me: who the fuck are you?" Zerrus shouted, her wolf companion and a few orbs hovering around her.

 

 He cackled and stepped up to Zerrus slowly, leaning down and whispering in her ear. "Basement." A pair of disembodied hands wrapped around her soul and squeezed, her breath cutting off almost immediately. "Everything will be made clear soon."

 

 A spark of magic bolted from her chest, her wolf launching forward and snapping at the hands. The wolf turned and looked at Zerrus, her maw opening slightly. "Stay determined, Zerrus."

 

 "HWAAAAGH!" She shouted as she shot upwards, her head smacking into something very hard. Zerrus reeled backwards and fell over the arm of the couch, landing in a heap on the floor, still wrapped tightly in a thick comforter.

 

 Wiggling to escape the warm blankets, she immediately noticed someone looking down at her from the couch. "damn, kid. you really are hardheaded." Sans joked, rubbing his forehead slightly and chuckling.

 

 Zerrus managed to free herself from the soft cocoon and looked at him. "You alright?"

 

 "i should be askin' you that. you don't even show any signs of discomfort."

 

 "Yeah... well. I hit my head A LOT." Sans extended his hand and Zerrus took it willingly, hoisted up back to her feet. She went to straighten her shirt when she noticed something.  
 She wasn't wearing the clothes she came down here in.

 

 Zerrus shot an accusing look directly at Sans, a deep scowl drawn on her face. "Wow. Smooth move."

 

 Sans immediately cleared his throat and looked away, a blue blush creeping on his face. "d-dat! zerrus is awake!"

 

 "Don't try to distract me! What did you do?!"

 

 Dat rushed down the steps, nearly missing the last step and staggering as he waddled towards Zerrus. She normally would have been partially amused at the grace and tact of his descent, but instead remained irritated at the skeleton standing across from her.

 

 "Tech, you okay?" Dat huffed out, catching his breath.

 

 "Yeah... just feeling a bit violated." Zerrus shot a menacing glare at Sans, who nudged Dat's arm to get his attention.

 

 "Well, your clothes were soaked from the snow melting. You were kinda runnin' a fever and fainted. Nobody wants to sleep wearing wet clothes! S-so... I kinda changed your clothes while you were unconscious?"

 

 Zerrus remained silent but kept glaring at Sans. Her expression eased and she sighed, gesturing for Sans to come to her. He hesitantly responded to her beckoning and shifted uneasily. Zerrus planted a hand on his shoulder and jostled him slightly.

 

 "I know you changed my clothes. Dat's coverin' for ya. But... since I DID faint and it is cold outside... you did the right thing. Just... warn me next time if you're gonna do that shit." she whispered, smiling while shooting a dangerous glint of aggrivation at him.

 

 "thanks..." Sans mumbled, smiling a bit wider and looking over to Dat. He shrugged and waited for Zerrus to start asking questions.

 

 Instead of asking questions, Zerrus sat down on the couch and trailed off in thought. She wasn't sure whether she should ask the brothers if they have a basement or if she should search for it herself. Zerrus's attention was drawn to some movement out of her peripheral vision, noting that Sans and Dat were shuffling down the steps.

 

 Dat gestured to Zerrus for her to scoot over a bit to let him sit, but she shot a confused look. She was as far over as she could get on such a small couch. She was practically sitting on the armrest! Dat sighed and avoided looking at her. "Move your tail."

 

 "I can't move my tail. If I move myself any further, I'll be sitting on the freakin armrest! I don't want my ass to be sore from sitting on a corner!" Zerrus argued back.

 

 "Your ass will be sore if I sit on your tail."

 

 "What the hell? Dat, since when were you such a crude dude? Why the fuck would you sit on my ass?!"

 

 "N-No! You-! AUGH! Just... look to your left! On the cushion!" Dat was starting to get a bit irritated at her misunderstanding, thinking the weirdest possible scenario they could ever be in. She complied and noticed a fuzzy blue clump on the cushion.

 

 Thinking it was just a fur-lined coat like Sans's hoodie, Zerrus tugged on it to pull it free from the confines of the couch. She yelped as a jab of pain shot up her lower back and curled into herself. Zerrus grumbled deeply in embarrassment and looked up at Dat.

 

 "Welp! Now I know what you were sayin'. The awkward meter goes up YET ANOTHER NOTCH! WHAT THE FUCK!" Zerrus snapped, grabbing her hair and pulling slightly in confusion. Her fingers brushed one of her ears and she immediately jerked her hand away.

 

 "Someone. Explain. Now. Before I blow up!"  
 Dat looked over to Sans and grimaced, Sans shrugging at a loss to what to say. "Sans and I were discussing it ourselves. We don't know what the hell happened. Well... at least to you." Dat started to explain.

 

 "After I left the bar to get some fresh air... Papyrus stopped me. He was fighting me, wanting to capture us so he could get into the Royal Guard. Something... awakened in me, I guess. All of a sudden, my GM abilities were amp'd up. I kinda lit up like a christmas tree, then the next thing I know, I got these ears and a tail."

 

 "Annnnnd, I'm guessin' that your magic backwashed to me and I got the same crazy shit happenin' to me!" Zerrus continued, hanging her head low and scratching at her head. She gasped slightly and started chuckling quietly to herself.

 

 "Uh oh. I know that laugh."

 

 Zerrus stood up and stepped over to an empty area of the living room. Sans watched curiously as she took a deep breath. She willed her soul to hover in front of her, her colors dimmed. The crack situated on the center of her soul had deepened, a grunt of discomfort slipping out of her. Dat's colors were now ghosting the exterior of her soul.

 

  She sent her soul back into her chest and slung her pack over her shoulder, storming past Dat and Sans. "Yo, Dat! Stay here. There's something I gotta do."

 

 She shuffled into the library, the hood of her borrowed parka over her head. "Welcome! Please let me know if you need anything, dear." greeted the green monster behind the counter. Zerrus gave a curt nod and shuffled over to the shelves.

 

 Thumbing through the various titles, her finger stopped on one that caught her eye; Soul Bonding for New Couples. Her face scrunched up in immediate distaste at the last two words. Pulling the book from the shelf, she scuttled over to a vacant table and sat down. She flipped to the table of contents and immediately searched for anything relating to glows.

 

 Being lost in glancing over the various details, a rather friendly monster crept up behind her. "Hey, Sansy~"

 

 "EEACK!" Zerrus yelped, not expecting the sudden outburst. She felt her heart race and her entire body heat up from the instant reaction. Slapping a hand over her mouth, she glanced over her shoulder and stared at the monster warily.

 

 The monster resembled a bunny, cinnamon colored and a bit of a flush on their face. Zerrus could smell alcohol on their breath and almost gagged at the smell. She relaxed slightly and drew her attention back to the book.

 

 "Gee, Sansy. Never knew you could yell. Watcha readin' there?"

 

 "I-"

 

 "Soul Bonding for New Couples? OOH~! Got yourself a little crush, hmm?" Zerrus let off a tiny grunt and followed it with a cough. "You DO! Who is it?"

 

 "I... think you are misunderstanding." She pulled the hood down and scratched at her ear. "I'm not Sans. He just lent me his jacket."

 

 The small monster roared with laughter and slapped a hand on her back, causing Zerrus to tense up at the contact. "Ya must be crushing on him pretty hard!"

 

 "N-no no no! It's not like that!"

 

 "Then what is it then?"

 

 Zerrus refused to say another word, continuously scanning the book for anything that could explain the sudden changes. The friendly monster finally gave up talking to her when she turned the page and tensed up, reading the passage:

 

 'A soul bond has varying ways of showing itself. The most common form of indication is the smaller soul nestled inside the one presented. A rare and very powerful form is when the color of the partnered soul coats it, sending fragments of magic to the host and amplifying their magic in a variety of ways.'

 

 'Should the new amplification prove to be a problem for the host, they can initiate a Breach. Breaching is a way of severing the connection of the two souls, leaving them with their own magic once more if they live.'

 

 "If they live?" Zerrus mumbled under her breath, in an attempt to conceal what she was reading.

 

 Sensing a familiar presence drawing closer to her, Zerrus shut the book and began thumbing through the titles once more, pulling a few books from the shelf. An ancient looking book fell from behind one of the larger and newer ones, piquing her curiosity.

 

 Zerrus bent down and picked up the book, noting the familiar markings on the cover. "Oh, nobody can read that. It was found at the dump and restored by our Royal Scientist, but we can't understand the writings. It all looks like chicken scratch to us." called out the green monster.

 

 "I can read it." Zerrus bluntly responded, flipping open the cover and coughing as a dust cloud flew up into her face. "It is an ancient language abandoned long ago. I'm honestly surprised that such a thing is even down here, AND that it's intact!"

 

 "Well, if you want, you can have it! Any friend of Sans is a friend of mine! Speaking of... what IS your name?"

 

 "Zerrus."

 

 "Such a unique name! I would have asked if you were a human, but your ears kinda withdrew any doubt. You're clearly some sort of canine monster."

 

 Zerrus grunted in annoyance and stuffed the book safely inside the parka, securing it between her arm and her side. "Well, I may see you soon. Any more questions I may have... well... where else can someone go to get answers besides a library? Right?"

 

 The green monster chuckled and waved as Zerrus walked out into the winter chill of Snowdin. She held her head down low and focused on returning to the brother's house. Zerrus connected with something solid and large, causing her to fall down into the snow and rub her lower back.

 

 "Huh?" spoke the monster as he looked down at the fallen Zerrus, her face hidden behind the fur of Sans's parka. "Gee Sans. Did you drink too much ketchup again?"

 

 'Ketchup? Oh... right. Guess it's the equivalent to alcohol for him.'

 

 The monster bent down and took a huge sniff of her face, causing her to shudder as prickly fur tickled her cheek. "You smell... different." He took another whiff, this time near her arm. "You LOOK like Sans... but you don't quite SMELL like Sans."

 

 'Whyyy? Why does everyone think I'm Saaaaaaaaans?!'

 

 The fuzzy monster went to sniff her chest when she took a hasty step backwards, reflectively crossing her arms and curling inwards slightly. The fluffy monster took a step forward and she bolted right by him, running as fast as she could and by far the least graceful way she ever has.

 

 Zerrus felt her boot catch on a thick clump of ice imbedded in the snow, faceplanting just in front of Sans and Papyrus's house. Scrambling to push herself back to her feet, she felt her face heat up when the door opened and a pair of fuzzy pink slippers was all she could see.

 

 "Fuck me..." she grumbled, and noticed that Sans had bent down to where he was eye level with her.

 

 "you were running from something. what happened out there to rattle your bones?" Sans asked, holding a hand out to Zerrus. She gladly took his hand and pulled herself up to her feet with little assistance.

 

 "Let's see... I was mistaken to be you TWICE NOW, had a huge dog-like monster come chasin' after me after I refused to let him sniff my freakin' boobs... I'm pretty reserved. You know that." Zerrus explained, stomping her foot slightly to kick off excess snow before walking into the house. "Anyways... where's Dat? I may have found something that can help us out."

 

 Sans scratched the back of his skull nervously and averted his eyes, avoiding contact with Zerrus, causing her to growl slightly. "he... went to waterfall."

 

 "He WHAT?!" She felt a pinging sensation in her chest, causing her to fall to one knee and gasp. "Why did he go there?"

 

 "dat didn't want you to go given the amount of trouble you keep finding yourself in."

 

 "Nunon ahkon het los voth pah daar hahvulon. (The only trouble here is with all these nightmares.)"

 

 "there's that wierd language again. that's twice you've used it near me, and now i'm curious. just what are you saying and why do i feel so threatened by it?"

 

 Sighing and gesturing towards the couch, Zerrus sat down and crossed her leg over the other. Sans sat down next to her and stared at her with eyelights dimmed. "Well boneboy, settle in cause there's quite a bit you don't know."


	11. Legends and Reality

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sans finally manages to get Zerrus to talk about the mysterious language she's been muttering in. Now she will disclose the truth through the mysterious book she had located in the library.

 

 "It is the language of the Eternal Guardians. I inadverdently learned it a ye-... uh... well, it WAS a year ago. This whole reset shit is confusing me." Zerrus groaned, rubbing at the back of her neck in frustration.  
 

"heh. i know, kid. i've pretty much given up on keeping track of time anymore." Sans shrugged, stuffing his hands into his hoodie. "something about this timeline seems... strange."  
 

"Explain, Sans. You are the only one who can help us to help you."

 

 "well, for one: you and dat are here. normally it would be the kid. that's really the reason i attacked you. i thought that they had gotten to you."

 

 "They? You mean Frisk?"

 

 Sans shook his head in response.

 

 "Then who?"

 

 Sans's eyes dimmed even further, a look of discomfort painted on his skull.

 

 "Withdrawn... for now. What else is strange?"

 

 "that book has never been found in the library before. the fact it's showing up now is too convenient."

 

 Zerrus looked down at the book and an awkward grimace drew on her lips. "It's almost as if... someone or even something is forcing the legend of the Eternal Guardians to merge with your reality. And this has never happened before?"

 

 Sans shook his head. "positive. so, based on your strange behavior as well, i'm guessing something changed in you besides the soul bond when the reset occured."

 

 "Roughly putting it, yes. Thanks for reminding me, by the way. I should return Dat's magic to where it belongs."

 

 Sans gripped her arm, forcing her to look him in the eyes. His eyes were void of the lights and his usual grin was now flat. "you mean a breach?"

 

 "That's what the book I read earlier said. It said something about 'if they live'. Does that mean someone can die by a breach?" Sans nodded solemnly. "Is there any way we can soften the breach, or at least help me get rid of this damn tail and these annoying ears?!"

 

 "i've never had a soulmate so i know nothing about breaching. you would have to ask a bonded pair about that. as for the extra limbs? try focusing on your soul to keep it locked away until you need it."

 

 Zerrus closed her eyes and took a deep breath, a calm glow radiating from her chest. The light ghosted to the tail and to her ears, a small violet tinge coating the golden aura. A sharp stab of pain sent Zerrus falling over the back of the couch and into a heap on the floor.

 

 She took quick inventory to see that her ears were back to their original pointed state and the tail was gone. Taking that moment, she fished into her bag and grabbed her ear defenders. Zerrus set them to her ears and adjusted the dial, making constant scratching sounds as she scratched at the couch.

 

 She nodded and returned to the couch, a slight blush on her face from the embarassing manner in which she fell down. "You didn't see shit." she mumbled, looking away from him and back to the book she found in the library.

 

 "think you can read what's in there to me? i kinda can't read whatever language that's in and i'm curious." Sans reclined against the couch and watched Zerrus as she thumbed over to the first page.

 

 "You and me both, boneboy." She cleared her throat and indirectly spoke in the same language the book was written in. "'Zoor do faal Unahzaal Vahlok priidah yaav centuries, enook oblaan ko drem'. That says The legend of the Eternal Guardians spans across centuries, each tale ending in peace."

 

 "'Thraat pogaan kein kozeim tiid, faal Unahzaal Vahlok alun genun nistmaar ko grah fah neilaasend do gutlein'. Despite the many wars throughout time, the Eternal Guardians always revealed themselves in a battle for the survival of the planet."

 

 "'Pah do daar oblaan gein eruvos, fod jul kuz planetary trun kotin niist meyar haal kren stahdim sogaal'. All of this ended one year, when humans took planetary matters into their own hands and shattering the divine gem. Is it referring to the gem we found in my mythology book?"

 

 "probably. keep reading." Sans motioned, leaning a bit closer to Zerrus.

 

 "'Faal Rah tol sent faal Unahzaal Vahlok wah jaaril jul lost kriinuth naal niist med-zeymah faal Feyn Kulaan'. The Gods that sent the Eternal Guardians to protect humanity were executed by their counterpart; the Bane Prince."

 

 "'Toz wah julro vosod, drem fund neh daal wah aus. Stin fen neh kos drun wah imaaraan'. Due to humanity's transgression, peace would never return to the suffering. Freedom will never be brought to the enslaved."

 

 "'Ol pitance, faal Rah komaan wah bolaav jul gein laat grozein. Nust staad voknau gol ziin conduits, gein voth sil do Unahzaal Vahlok. vorey sil do Feyn Kulaan'. As a pitance, the Gods decided to grant humanity one last chance. They placed upon the earth two conduits, one with the soul of an Eternal Guardian. The other the soul of a Bane Prince."

 

 "'Girvoh tol held sil do faal Unahzaal Vahlok lost mindok ol Resurz. girvoh voth sil do faal Feyn Kulaan lost mindok ol Yun'. The vessel that held the soul of the Eternal Guardians were known as Resurz. The vessel with the soul of the Bane Prince were known as Newb."

 

 "'Daar los ol gut ol zoor prodah. Nuz fos Zu'u koraav los pruzah wahl nok'. This is as far as the legend foretold. But what I see is a well constructed lie. So, this is a journal?"

 

 "keep reading. this seems to be from someone's personal experience." Zerrus nodded and turned the next page.

 

 "'Zu'u lost alun kosaan fun daar stories. Ni ont lost nii kosaan gevahzen wah zey tol nii los vahzah. Zu'u fen siiv vahzen, orin waan Zu'u los naalein'. I have always been told these stories. Not once has it been proven to me that it is true. I will find the truth, even if I am alone."

 

 "'Nau dii zin ol vahmaan do faal Gleam Relahmik, Zu'u fen yah tir daar so-called Unahzaal Vahlok ahrk Feyn Kulaan. Orin waan Zu'u unt'. On my honor as a member of the Gleam Council, I will seek out this so-called Eternal Guardian and Bane Prince. Even if I die trying."

 

 Zerrus flips through a few blank pages until she comes across another passage.

 

 "'Tey fon wah kos vahzah. Zu'u ru kotin goraan kon naal faan do Resurz. Fod Zu'u laan kolos rek ofaal ek faan nol, rek saag nii lost rahn tum nol fronkenlik wah fronkenlik. Daar vis ni kos grozeindez, vis nii'? The story seems to be true. I ran into a young girl by the name of Resurz. When I asked where she got her name from, she said it was passed down from generation to generation. This can not be a coincidence, can it?"

 

 "'Vorey gein, daar tiid sen. Rok saag tol ok faan lost Yun. Slightly amusing, nuz ofan lund do dii wund, Zu'u vis ni nep. Daar los becoming graav trun voth faal Relahmik'. Another one, this time a boy. He said that his name was Newb. Slightly amusing, but given the nature of my quest, I can not laugh. This is becoming a serious matter with the Councils."

 

 "'Zu'u drun ziin kiir strin wah enook vorey. Fos koros lost terrifiying. Resurz ahrk Yun went nau nostiguv. riin do glimrel krenmah avok zey, causing zey wah ved tir. Fod Zu'u awoke, pah tol reyzan do kiir lost ziin bruzah do elegant sogaal. Los daar fabeled Stahdim Sogaal'? I brought the two children close to each other. What happened was terrifiying. Resurz and Newb went on the offensive. A wave of energy crashed over me, causing me to black out. When I awoke, all that remained of the children were two shards of an elegant gem. Is this the fabeled Divine Gem?"

 

 Zerrus's eyes darkened and she shut the book, her finger left on the page she was reading. She gulped hard, her stomach twisting in knots at the passages she had just read. Rushing into the kitchen, Zerrus grabbed a glass from one of the cabinets, filling it with water. Her hands shaking, Zerrus brought the water to her.

 

 "you okay? you look pale." Sans asked, Zerrus splashing her glass of water on her face. She casually wiped the water from her face and looked over her shoulder.

 

 "Y-yeah." she lied.

 

 "zerrus..."

 

 "Okay... not quite. I could... well... FEEL the fear they had on the next page. Whatever is written in the page actually captured their emotions."

 

 "stars... what happened to them?"

 

 "Not sure. It felt like my stomach was being twisted on the inside." Zerrus wandered back into the living room and scooped up the book, her hand hovering over the page she bookmarked. "It's something that runs in my family. We're empathic, so we pick up emotions nearby."

 

 "if we want to know the truth kid, we need to keep reading."

 

 Zerrus nodded and turned the page. "'Sos. Ful pogaas sos. Zu'u daal hofkiin mindin lost sizaan kiir nunon wah siiv dii hofkiin lohiim al. Dii ragnavir. Dii fahdon. Pah. Dilon. Los Zu'u borii'? Blood. So much blood. I returned home after having lost the children only to find my home town destroyed. My family. My friends. Everyone. Dead. Am I next?"

 

 "'Til lost nunon gein vorey neilaasin goraan kiir voth prun om. Niist miin lost sos sahqo ahrk silkun um niin verut. Niist ulaan kopraan lost kelm ko sos, niist expression lost niliik. Zu'u faas volzaan. Tol Nust los gein vahlokeyvaal fah dinok do sahsun'. There was only one other survivor; a young child with brown hair. Their eyes were blood red and the aura around them was threatening. Their entire body was coated in blood, their expression was blank. I fear the worst. That THEY are the one responsible for the death of the

village."

 

 "'Zu'u lost viilut. kiir los megalomaniac. Zu'u lingraav niin krii stahraal bystander ko krah sos. Nust lost nid provocation. Nust nunon drey. Waan Zu'u dreh ni dreh atruk do daar kiir, fos fen koros wah praan do norI was right. The child is a megalomaniac. I watched them kill an innocent bystander in cold blood. They had no provocation. They just did. If I do not do something about this child, what will happen to the rest of the country?"

 

 "red eyes..." Sans mumbled under his breath.

 

 "'Agreh'. That's all that passage says. Just the name 'Chara'." Zerrus questioned, looking at Sans to see a reaction. She noted that his eyes were dark.

 

 'He clearly knows something, but I better not ask until I finish scouring this book.'

 

 "'Faal Gleam ahrk Gloam ney vorohah vothaalvut voth zey. Nust ris ireid niist irkbaan fah enook vorey ahrk laan ahsod do zey nust laan zey wah krii Agreh. Zu'u vis ni drun dimaar wah dreh nii. Orin to nust los krivaan, nust los tul kiir'. The Gleam and Gloam both made contact with me. They put aside their hate for each other and asked a task of me; they want me to kill Chara. I can not bring myself to do it. Even though they are a murderer, they are still a child."

 

 Zerrus flipped through multiple blank pages until she found a very unsettling entry.

 

 "'Zu'u lost funt. Zu'u vis ni krii Agreh. Daar kiir los nid lingrahiik mun. Nust los osos eylok do hokzii. nunon truk Zu'u vis dreh los fustir niin nol praan do jul. Zu'u vis nunon draal tol nust dreh ni daal'. I have failed. I can not kill Chara. This child is no longer human. They are some kind of demon. The only thing I can do is banish them from the rest of humanity. I can only pray that they do not return."

 

 Zerrus gulped hard and read the next entry.

 

 "'Daar los dii laat fen ahrk testament. Wah pahwo vis etaak daar, lig mindoraan. Zu'u lost nid poguk. Nii los dii tozein tol wahlaan do tiid lost kosaan vaazaan. Zu'u, Zehanpuryu, hind fah hi wah mindok daar. Zu'u unt wah krenok Agreh's sil nol niist kopraan, wah nivos niin nol wreaking zos havoc. Zu'u nunon aggrivated ahstiir. Nu, nust los caught ko vozah kenlok, kast ko fos Zu'u vust pelaak ol vul grunz. Waan hi grind niin. .. waan nust unt wah tinvaak wah hi. .. Vogahvon. Nust fen gram hin maat'." Zerrus trailed off her statement and stared forward, her eyes glazing in tears at the words she had just read.

 

 Sans leaned towards her and nudged her slightly, placing a hand on her back and rubbing in small circles. "what did it say?"

 

 Zerrus sobbed once and cleared her throat. "This is my last will and testament. To whoever can read this, please understand. I had no choice. It is my fault that the structure of time has been torn. I, Zehanpuryu, wish for you to know this. I tried to separate Chara's soul from their body, to prevent them from wreaking more havoc. I only aggrivated the situation. Now, they are caught in an infinite loop, trapped in what I could describe as a dark prison. If you meet them... if they try to speak to you... RESIST. They will cloud your judgement and force you to inflict pain on the innocent. Please. Help fix my mistake."

 

 "This... Zehanpuryu tried everything in their power to fix the error they made. Chara. Sans, you made a really... disgruntled face when I said their name the first time. Who is Chara?"

 

 "i think zehan kinda said the same thing i would say about them. they are some kind of demon. all they have done in the past timelines is kill everyone here... including me and my brother." Sans solemnly mumbled.

 

 "When do they tend to show up?"

 

 Sans immediately shot Zerrus an uncomfortable glance.

 

 "If Zehanpuryu couldn't stop it being a mortal, maybe she needs the help of the Eternal Guardians. Well... an Eternal Guardian and a Bane Prince. One of us is the Bane Prince."

 

 "But what I don't understand is if according to Zehanpuryu the two fought each other and disappeared, why haven't Dat and I fought yet? We're in close proximity almost all the time. Not once have we tried to kill each other."

 

 "maybe... maybe it's not time for it to happen just yet."

 

 "Eh?"

 

 "i can't really explain it. i just feel it in my bones."

 

 "UGH! Of course you would make a freakin' pun! It's your forte!" Zerrus angrily scratched at her head and hung her head low. "How long do we have until Chara is supposed to show up?"

 

 "i think they're already here. maybe they're just waiting for the right moment."

 

 "The right moment to kill... But, how would they if the accounts of Zehanpuryu's journal clearly state that this took place ages ago?"

 

 Zerrus and Sans stared blankly at each other for a few moments until a sudden realization kicked in. 

 

 "they possess someone. it's usually frisk, but with you two here..."

 

 "It could be either me or Dat."

 

 "right."

 

 "Now, the real question here is-"

 

 "when."


	12. Echo

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After reading the book and learning the truth behind the Gleam/Gloam war, Zerrus and Sans finally decide to act.

 

 Zerrus bolted through the chill of Snowdin, leaving Sans at the house and nearly tripping a few times. She found a sort of cave and immediately rushed inside, only to find Sans sitting at the station nearby. "No time, Sans. I gotta get to Dat before he does something stupid." Zerrus bluntly responded as she strode by him. He placed an arm in front of her and glanced up.

 

 "fine. but before you go... you should stop to listen to the flowers." Sans winked and vanished before her. Zerrus grumbled and pushed onwards, ignoring his riddle and stumbling into some tall grass. She pushed her way by some of the grass and froze when she heard heavy footsteps overhead.

 

 "Nnh!" Zerrus grunted as she froze in place. She glanced up and saw what she could assume to be Undyne based on what Papyrus had told her before the reset.

 

 The antagonizing figure hunched over the edge and summoned a spectral spear of sorts, quite literally startling a raunchy fart sound from Zerrus as she huddled down deeper into the tall grass. A quick snerk rumbled somewhere in the bushes with her, immediately silencing themselves as the armored monster stepped back and vanished into the shadows.

 

 Zerrus crept over to where she heard the laugh and immediately felt her soul lurch a bit. "Shoulda known... Dat? Watcha doin' in here?" Zerrus growled a bit.

 

 Dat immediately keeled over and started laughing. Zerrus made a few disgruntled sounds and continued staring at her soulmate, rolling in the dirt and holding his side. "D-Did you just shit yourself?! HAHAHAHA!"

 

 "Sh-shut up! How long have you been hiding in here anyways?"

 

 "Well... it kinda felt like something was holding me back. I don't feel that anymore. Besides, I can't really see in the dark very well."

 

 "Who can?" Zerrus replied sarcastically, grabbing Dat's hoodie and pulling him with her. "Come on. We better keep moving. There's a lot I need to explain, but we need to keep going towards the barrier. At least familiarize ourselves with the Underground."

 

 A yellow monster child ran out of the brush and beamed at Zerrus, their face overjoyed. "Dude! That was so... AWESOME! How did you get her to look at you like that? You are so lucky!" The child went to dash away, falling over their feet and picking themselves back up and running onwards.

 

 "Well. That happened." Zerrus mumbled, walking into the next cavern. A bridge of flowers led off into a dark corner, piquing her curiosity. She stepped across the bridge and found a lone bench with a blue flower sprouting next to it. Underneath the bench was a random quiche, abandoned and left there.

 

 She remembered Sans's advice before she stormed off, meeting Undyne for the first time: to listen to the flowers. She brought her ear close to the flower and heard a familiar voice echo over and over.

 

 "i just wasn't ready for the responsibility..."

 

 'Was that... Sans's voice? Come to think of it... Papyrus had mentioned before that Sans had attempted to make a quiche before. This must be it. But what responsibility is he referring to...?'

 

 Zerrus shook her head swiftly and packed the quiche neatly into her pouch pressing further into Waterfall. She came to a chasm and noted a small, anglerfish-like monster hiding in the corner. The room darkened around Zerrus and her soul fluttered in front of her.

 

 Zerrus squinted to see four hovering panels in front of her.

 

 FIGHT   ACT   ITEM   MERCY

 

 She poked the ACT panel and four words appeared in front of her:

 

 *Check         *Conduct

 

 *Hum         *Smile

 

 Zerrus hovered her hand over the word smile and phsyically shot a smile towards the rather timid monster. The monster let off a tiny squeak and lowered her head a bit.  
 Musical notes fluttered towards her and she stalled. Zerrus felt one of the notes smack into her, causing her to bounce back a bit. A golden bar materialized in front of her.

 

 ZERRUS TEKNIANU LV ??   HP |                     |_| 402/417

 

 "Ow." Zerrus mumbled. The monster gasped slightly and shrunk further away. "Nonono! Wait! I-It's okay! I was a bit stupid! You didn't hurt me THAT bad!"

 

 The shy monster perked up a bit and hummed quietly. Zerrus caught the sound by her ear defenders and listened to the melody she was quietly humming. She smiled and hummed along with the shy creature.

 

 After singing for a few minutes, the color returned to the cave. "I... I haven't sung with anyone since my sister fell down..." mumbled the fish-like monster.

 

 "Fell down?" Zerrus quietly asked to herself rather than to the monster.

 

 "M-my name is Shyren. I'm glad to have met you. I don't think I would have ever been able to sing again without your help." Shyren shrunk a bit back into the shadows and smiled widely at Zerrus, waving as she turned towards the patter of rain nearby.

 

 "Son of a bitch... Yo Dat?"

 

 "What?" Dat responded turning to look at Zerrus with a look of confusion.

 

 "I just now noticed something. Something a bit... obvious."

 

 "What?"

 

 "It's raining."

 

 "And?"

 

 "There was snow back in Snowdin. (Well no shit Sherlock...) How is it that monsters have weather when we are underneath a freakin' mountain?" Dat looked forward and a look of realization dashed across his face. "Yeah. See? I bet if Sans were here, he'd chalk it up to 'magic' which I can't really argue. I mean... apparently I have 417 HP, whatever the acronym for THAT would be."

 

 "Health Points maybe?"

 

 "No, I don't think it's as simple as that. Think about it. There's LV, which we would have immediately said 'level', but it's not. And the same thing with EXP. So, what could HP possibly stand for?"

 

 Dat shrugged and continued walking in the rain, spotting a bin with umbrellas and taking one. He held it out towards Zerrus and she shook her head. "What about it?"

 

 "Well back on the surface, we didn't have anything like that. Let's face it; humans are dangerous creatures. Far more than we would have thought. I mean, our ancestors sealed the monsters underground! And as far as Sans and I have gathered, something ELSE was sealed away."

 

 "Oh?"

 

 "In order to do that, humans MUST have had some degree of magic in their souls. Even the books I read back in the library said that. I honestly don't think that we'll be enough to break the barrier, Dat."

 

 "Wow. Sudden drop in self-esteem there. What's gotten into you?"

 

 "I don't know. It's just... a nagging feeling I'm getting from all this."

 

 "That won't be the ONLY THING you'll be feeling!" shouted a menacing voice. A blue spear shot down, nearly clipping Zerrus's nose. She hastily looked up and spotted the same armored monster from earlier.

 

 "OH! SHIT!" Zerrus screamed, grabbing Dat's arm and pulling him with her as she made a mad dash away from the threatening presence.

 

 Spears flew around her, some barely missing her at all. Dat easily dodged the attacks using his teleportation abilities to jump a few feet. One spear smashed into her hip, causing her to stagger to the left.

 

 ZERRUS TEKNIANU LV ??   HP |                 |____| 378/417

 

 Her eyes widened at the visible chunk missing from her HP. She wrenched the spear free from her body and continued running, diving into another patch of tall grass. She held her breath as the heavy footfalls of the monster approached. Zerrus shut her eyes and waited for the moment.

 

 Her eyes shot open when an armored hand latched onto Dat's cheek and hoisted him up. He nervously waved at the monster and chuckled. "Uh... hi?"

 

 They set him down and casually walked away, leaving Dat and Zerrus to pause and stare at each other. "Did I just see that right? Did she just pinch your cheek?" Zerrus gawked.

 

 "Yup."

 

 Zerrus pushed herself up to her feet and crept out of the grass, spotting a bright blue flower glowing nearby. She bent down and stared at it for a moment. She brought her ear to the flower and faintly heard something echo.

 

 "Turn around."

 

 Zerrus complied and spotted the same monster yet again. "Seven. Seven human souls. Then our King... King ASGORE Dreemur will become a god. Do you understand, human? With your seventh and final soul, we can finally be free." boomed a female voice.

 

 "Wh-what?" Zerrus gasped, the area around her darkening. Her soul tried to flutter out when something almost shoved it back into place.

 

 "Figured. Coward. You won't even initiate a confrontation. And yet you wear the masque of a warrior."

 

 "Now hold up there! There's method to my madness, and I'm sure you know it. I'm apparently a very readable individual. I only wish to HELP you! Not FIGHT!"

 

 "You moron. The only way you CAN help us is if you give us your SOUL! And there's only one way to do it."

 

 "Dude!" squealed a young voice, the same yellow monster from earlier dashing out of the grass next to Zerrus and standing in front of her. "Undyne, I'll help you fight!" He looked between Zerrus and Undyne, then stared off in the distance, blinking twice. "Wait... who's she fighting?"

 

 Undyne stomped forward and grabbed the monster child by its cheek, pulling them away. Zerrus took that opportunity to sprint by and continue deeper into Waterfall. She bumped into Dat, sending them both crashing to the ground. "Dat?! What the hell, man! Undyne damn near tried to kill me!"

 

 "Huh? Zerrus? What...?" Dat stuttered, rubbing the back of his head and avoiding eye contact.

 

 She shook her head and pushed by him, the same monster kid from earlier sitting across the bridge. "H-hey!" Zerrus called out to them, waving and smiling. The kid glanced at her and then looked away. "I wanted to thank you for bailing me out of that situation."

 

 "U-Undyne told me... 'Stay away from that human'. Is it true? Are you re-really a human?" they muttered. Their small form shaking a bit, either in fear or anticipation. Zerrus nodded in repsonse. "Hah haha! I knew it! Well... I know it now. You seemed far too nice to be a human. I always heard horror stories of humans bein cruel beings who locked us away many years ago."

 

 "K-kid..."

 

 "But when I met you, I felt different. Like... that maybe all the teachers were wrong about you humans. Dude, I totally should've known that the teachers were wrong! I mean, look at you! You could've beat up Undyne. Or at least tried. No one could beat her! She's so awesome!"

 

 Zerrus avoided looking at the child, guilt weighing on her shoulders. She sighed and bent down, hugging the monster tightly. "You're a pretty awesome kid, y'know that? Not many would approach a human like you did."

 

 "W-whoa, dude. You alright? You seem a bit... shakey." Zerrus pulled away from the kid and smiled widely. She nodded and gently pushed him back towards Snowdin, where she knew is where he lived. He padded forward, tripping and dangling dangerously on a inlip on the cave walls. "I-I slipped!"

 

 Zerrus noticed Undyne approach rather swiftly, but paying it no mind, she dove after the kid. She reached down and wrapped her fingers around his stripped sweater, pulling him up to the bridge. He turned and looked at her, then back to Undyne. "Jesus... you scared me."

 

 Undyne took a few steps towards the still-stunned Zerrus, the Monster Kid stepping between them and shooting a stern look. "Y-yo! If you wanna hurt my friend here... y-you're gonna have to g-get past me, first!" Undyne took a few steps back, her gaze never leaving Zerrus as she stormed away. "Thanks, dude. You really saved my skin there!"

 

 "Don't mention it. You should get back home. Your parents must be worried sick about you." Monster Kid opened his mouth to protest when Zerrus held up her hand and shook her head with a smile. "Don't worry about me, alright? Just get back home safely. Your safety is far more important than mine."

 

 He nodded and carefully crossed the bridge, heading back towards Snowdin. Zerrus pushed herself to her feet and immediately noticed Dat sitting on a box. "You sure are a natural mother figure, aren't you?" he mused.

 

 "Ehh..." Zerrus shrugged casually. Opening the box Dat was sitting on, Zerrus's eyes widened in shock at the contents. Inside was a supply of food items and a note. She picked up the note and read it:

 

 'down here in the underground, we have a certain amount of HP per person. HP is an acronym for HoPe. in order to restore your HP, you should eat some monster food or sleep.'

 

 'it's still important for you to stay determined. otherwise the food won't work. your body will reject it if you don't.'

 

 'i probably should have mentioned it before you ran after dat. didn't think you would actually get hurt too badly, but i guess i underestimated undyne.'

 

 '-sans'

 

 "Huh. Guess his name makes a lot more sense now... his handwriting is like that of the Comic Sans font anyways." Zerrus murmured out loud, forgetting that Dat was hovering just behind her. "Sans wouldn't put this stuff here unless there was a reason. He's that kind of guy."

 

 She fished out a cinnamon bun, shaped like a bunny, and turned it over in her hand. She took a bite and watched her HP steadily rise. Zerrus smiled contently, the taste of the food reminded her of home and the effects were a bonus. "Think we'll need these in a few?" Dat asked, closing the box after reading the note attached the the crate.

 

 "No doubt in my mind. But I noticed something; Undyne hasn't made ANY moves towards you. Only me. It's probably cause you have fox ears and a tail. You look like a monster with your hood up."

 

 "Oh yeah... so, what's the plan?"

 

 "It's clear to me that Undyne will challenge me. I can't refuse it. My suggestion is that when things get too dangerous, charge in and help me out. Once we have the chance to stun her, RUN. She ripped out roughly 25 HP from me. That's a pretty hard hit. If I fight her for too long, she'll kill me."

 

 "Should I use Gravitational Drop?"

 

 "It stuns, but it also hurts like a bitch... I think the best we can do is taunt her. I don't want to risk dusting anybody."

 

 "Dusting? What are you talking about?"

 

 Zerrus looked at her feet and rubbed at her arm, nervously coughing. "Dat... monsters don't die like we do. They turn to dust. And quite frankly, I'd rather not add a number to our Execution Points. We're both 0, and I plan to keep it that way."


	13. Pieces of the Past

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reality hits Zerrus like a brick as she continued down through Waterfall.

 

 "Undyne! I know you're there! Come on out so I can talk to you!" Zerrus shouts out to the mountainous structure in front of her. Undyne stepped out from the shadows, her arms crossed.

 

 "Nothing TO talk about. We need your soul. No exceptions." Undyne sneers.

 

 "You want this broken piece of shit?" Zerrus calls her soul, the crack deeper than ever and pulsating a sickly purple color. "I don't know what has damaged me... but I know that my soul will be useless to you. So... STOP BEING SUCH A PAIN IN THE ASS AND TALK TO ME."

 

 "Is that a challenge, PUNK?" Undyne tore off her helmet and lept down from her perch, red hair swaying in the wind.

 

 "Yeah! I'm challenging you to be rational and TALK TO ME. Like a civilized being. Just because you are identified as a monster species, doesn't mean you actually ARE monsters."

Zerrus's body shone a vibrant gold, a wall of energy covering where she faced. "I've been through far too much shit in my life to give in to those pathetic notions! I know you've all suffered being trapped down here for god knows how long, but it doesn't excuse YOUR inability to be polite like the others!"

 

 A blue spear shot out towards her, Zerrus holding her palm out and the magical barrier absorbing the attack. She huffed and lowered her hand.

 

 "Guess I'm stepping on a nerve there... Whatever, not like it matters anymore. After everything I've learned... everything I ever thought I knew to be a lie... what does it matter?"

 

 "Zerrus?" Dat called out in a whisper. Casually trying to approach her. She glanced over and a shockwave stalled him from advancing.

 

 "Zehanpuryu lost their life because of her beliefs. Her mission was to find the Eternal Guardian and the Bane Prince. To investigate the legend. When she found out the truth, she ended up damning her home... her family... her friends... EVERYONE into a gruesome demise! It's thanks to THIS legend that I've suffered and lost almost all sense of direction!"

 

 "Zehanpuryu...?"

 

 "Whoever this 'demon' was that she was fighting ended up taking her life when she sealed them away. And thanks to her sacrifice, the surface survived from their manipulation. But she ended up condemning YOU to a neverending cycle of pain."

 

 Undyne lowered her stance, but Zerrus kept the shield strong. "What would you know about pain?" she growled.

 

 "Enough to know that I've had enough. Enough of seeing others suffer from the acts of one of my ancestors. Enough of having to bear THEIR mistake on my shoulders. I'm done. Done with all of this! So, if you want to take my soul, GO AHEAD!" Zerrus forcibly sent her soul towards Undyne, heedles of the risk she was taking and finally giving up.

 

 Just as Undyne's hands went to reach for the frail heart, a wisp of blue and red magic coursed around it, the purple lining of the crack intensifying then dissipating. Time seemed to have slowed to a halt. Appearing in front of the soul was a cloaked woman, dressed in a black armor with white gems embroidering it. She turned to face Zerrus, her face masked, keeping her from seeing any facial features.

 

 "Zerrus. You cannot give up. If you do, you will end up making things worse. Not just for yourself. Not just for those around you. But for every thing and every one." the woman spoke calmly.

 

 "You don't understand my intentions. Get out of my WAY!." Zerrus shouted, sending a stronger shockwave of magic towards the mysterious woman.

 

 "I DO understand, you fool. You have to stay-."

 

 "What?! Determined?! What good did YOUR determination do?"

 

 "You are overstepping your boundaries."

 

 "Threaten me all you want, but you need to remember something: it's thanks to YOUR MISTAKE that I'm even here in the first place!"

 

 "I'm warning you..."

 

 "Fuck. Off. You. Ignorant. BITCH!" Zerrus lunged forward, sprinting past Undyne and the mysterious woman. Dat quickly followed behind, his breathing ragged from the sudden dash.

 

 "What the hell, Tech?! What the fuck was that?!" Dat almost demanded in a raspy voice.

 

 "The distraction! Just keep MOVING!"

 

 "But... you just freakin' bolted forward like Sonic!"

 

 "Don't question it, just fucking run!"

 

 Zerrus tripped over a spear that impaled the ground just in front of her, causing her to skid onto a smoltering hot dusty ground. She watched her health drop from the skid.

 

 ZERRUS TEKNIANU LV ??   HP |                          |_| 400/417

 

 "Ow." Zerrus muttered, pushing herself up and attempting to dust her pants. A sharp pain shot through her chest, tingling down her arms and legs. Zerrus looked down to see a spectral spear through her body.

 

 ZERRUS TEKNIANU LV ??   HP ||______________| 1/417

 

 She turned around shakily and spotted Undyne towering over her. "Whatever sorcery that was, I won't be deterred. You have to die for us to finally be free. There is no other way around it." she growled, summoning a spear in her hand and raising it over her head.

 

 "It doesn't matter anymore... just goes to show that I wasn't determined to bring you all peace... that... that everything I've suffered through in life... was just a means to an end." Zerrus mumbled in a voice that wasn't her own.

 

 The veil over her soul vanished, revealing a gold and white soul, shimmering just in front of her. Undyne threw her spear, Dat ran in front of Zerrus and held up a magical wall. The spear bounced off of the wall, shattering in midair. He turned and looked a Zerrus, her eyes void of all emotion.

 

 On instinct, Dat checked her stats.

 

 ZEHANPURYU  LV 90   HP |                              | 0/0

 

 "Fuck... that's not Zerrus. Undyne!" Dat shouted.

 

 "What are you still doing here?! Get out of here before she kills you!" Undyne yelled to him.

 

 "No, she won't kill me! She wouldn't even think about it!"

 

 "Look at her LOVE! She is a dangerous abomination!"

 

 "Abomination...? Hah... guess someone with no HOPE yet still lives IS an abomination. It's my fault. The heir of the Ithquant is right; it's thanks to me that they are here in the first place." Zerrus mourned.

 

 Undyne rushed forward, grabbing Zerrus by her shirt and hoisting her off her feet. "Did you say... Ithquant? How do you know that name?!"

 

 "It doesn't matter. What does matter is that I failed. And due to my failure, you will end up killing another emissary of the Gleam Council."

 

 Undyne lowered Zerrus, keeping a firm hand on her shoulder. "You're coming with me. I'm sure a certain someone here will know about this."

 

 Undyne lead her through the end chamber of Waterfall and onto the terrain of Hotland. They stood in front of a large laboratory, two armored monsters standing guard on the northern pass. Undyne knocked twice on the door, the sound of mechanical whirring audible.

 

 "O-oh! U-Undyne! I w-wasn't expecting t-to see you h-here!" stuttered a stocky yellow reptile in a labcoat. Zerrus looked up, her eyes still clouded.

 

 "Got a problem, Alph. Can we come inside?" Undyne curtly responded, pushing Zerrus closer to the monster.

 

 "O-of course! Come i-inside." Undyne kept a firm hold on Zerrus and forced her inside the lab. "S-so what's the pr-problem?"

 

 "This human claims that they are the heir of the Ithquant. I remember you saying that name before, so I brought her here."

 

 "That HUMAN is my wife! And she isn't herself right now, Undyne!" Dat shouted, prying Undyne's hand off of Zerrus and pulling her aside. "I checked her stats. She isn't the same Zerrus anymore."

 

 "W-wife? Oh. My. God! That's so adorable!" Alphys squealed in excitement. "How long have you two been married?"

 

 "Five years, but that's not important! What did she mean by she is the heir of the Ithquant? Cause this is the first time I've ever heard that."

 

 "W-well... we found an a-ancient tome th-that declared that t-the Ithquant w-were warriors with the p-power to destroy a-anything that opposed them. B-But according to

t-the records w-we dug up, they f-followed their own m-morals."

 

 "So... the Ithquant is a family bloodline of warriors with the ability to destroy. Guess that explains her LOVE. But what it doesn't explain is WHY she's acting like a damn psychopath!"

 

 "I would appreciate if you didn't refer to me in that manner as though I am not in the room." Zerrus grumbled, leaning against the wall and scratching her cheek. Her eyes were still glazed, but her voice was still coherent.

 

 "Zerrus?"

 

 "No. Zerrus's conscience is currently slumbering. You may refer to me as Zehanpuryu."

 

 "There's that name again. Zerrus mentioned that earlier when-" Dat started.

 

 "When she was fighting me." Undyne added. "What's so important about YOU? Why does this Zerrus person care so much about YOU?"

 

 "She probably felt my emotions. When she came into contact with the magical backwash of the barrier five years ago, my soul transmigrated into hers. But her power was untamed, too powerful for her to use at its peak. So she only used a fraction of her newfound powers." Zehanpuryu explained.

 

 "She always was empathic. But what I want to know is what made her suddenly lose all of her determination?" Dat asked.

 

 "My emotions must have collided with her own, causing a mix. I do not know where exactly her conscience has gone, but I DO know that she is in danger."

 

 "H-how is she in d-danger?" Alphys inquired, wringing her hand together.

 

 "Zerrus holds the ancient power of the Ithquant, my family bloodline. Her blood is far more potent than mine was many years ago. If the demon got ahold of that power..."

 

 "She could destroy the whole planet." Dat calmly responded, leaning against the wall and crossing his arms. "Tell us more about this 'demon'."

 

 "I would rather not discuss this matter with anyone other than the judge."

 

 "The judge? Wow. You must be new to the Underground. We don't have a judge." Undyne responded rather harshly.

 

 "Heh. That is where you are wrong. I can feel it. Besides, there is a reason for me wanting to speak to the judge. I need them to judge my actions."


	14. Falling

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After her soul was practically shoved from her body, Zerrus now finds herself floating endlessly.

 

 Zerrus slowly opened her eyes, darkness and violet lightning crashing around her. She slowly sat up, immediately noticing that she wasn't wearing the same thing she fell into the Underground in. Her arms were wrapped in a pair of leather bracers, and her forearms were guarded with a metallic plating. Etched onto the shoulder plates was a unique symbol, almost like that of the symbol she had seen carved into the walls of Waterfall.

 

 "What is this? What's going on here?!" Zerrus shouted in the darkness. The mysterious shadow from her nightmares sat near her, seemingly passive concerning the times she had been tormented by him. "You again? What do you want?"

 

 "You are trapped here in the void with me." he calmly responded.

 

 "Void? Wait... I'm trapped here?!"

 

 "Yes. A stronger force knocked your soul here with me. I don't think this was their intention, but it works for me." He stood up and towered over Zerrus, placing his hands on her shoulders. "I have to explain something to you, and you may act in a rather unsatisfactory manner as you have in the past."

 

 "No shit I've acted 'unsatisfactory'! You come baring down upon me, crush my soul, call me your PET, of course I'll be defensive! If you want me to do something, just fucking ask. Don't go treating me like some toy!"

 

 "Sad to say, I had no choice. Your soul is stubborn, to say the least. But now that the rather annoying portion of your soul is in the outside world, I can finally speak with you."

 

 "Fine, but you gotta answer a few questions of mine before I answer yours." The mysterious man gestured for her to continue. "What's your name?"

 

 "W.D. Gaster. I was the royal scientist for King Asgore."

 

 "Okay... do you have any relation to Sans or Papyrus?" Gaster nodded solemnly. "What is the relation? Father, brother, uncle? What?"

 

 "I am their father. I fell into the Core during one of my tests, and it brought me here. Ever since, I have been trying to escape the Void."

 

 "It's funny... they never mentioned you. And I have had yet to see any records of you anywhere in the Underground."

 

 "When I fell into the Core, my very existence on the plane of the 'living' was erased. Such as you are now."

 

 "Wait, my existence is erased?"

 

 "May as well be."

 

 Gaster extended a hand towards Zerrus and gestured towards her chest. She immediately took the hint and approached him cautiously. She felt the familiar tug of her soul being drawn out, only to reveal a dimly lit blue and red heart, the heart was torn in half and the second half was falling off. Zerrus shot a glare at Gaster before he held up a hand and frowned.

 

 "The other entity that used to reside in your soul stole your body." He simply explained.

 

 "Zehanpuryu stole my body? Why would she do that?" Zerrus asked, cradling her soul and examining it further.

 

 "I was hovering near you when you read that journal. You couldn't see me, but no doubt you could feel my presence." She nodded slowly and returned her soul to her chest. "I believe that this Zehanpuryu intends to rectify their mistakes. Even if it means they end up destroying your body."

 

 "But if she does that, I'll be trapped here forever."

 

 "Yes."

 

 Zerrus hung her head low and stared at the nonexistant floor. She wrung her hands and felt each of her fingers tense up, wanting to ball up into a fist and slam it into anything. Instead, she stood up and stepped in front of Gaster. She took a deep breath and steeled herself before exploding in a fit of rage.

 

 "Let me get this straight; you torture me in my dreams, Sans nearly rips my head off when I fall into the Underground, I nearly get murdered by Undyne, Zehanpuryu steals my body, and my soul is now torn. How can I trust anyone at this rate?! Let alone YOU?!" Zerrus yelled, a tiny spark of magic lacing her eye.

 

 "I understand you cannot trust me, but please understand. I wasn't actually talking to you in your dreams. I was talking to her." Gaster explained carefully. Zerrus felt a strong jolt of magic strike her right cheek, causing her to fall forward right into Gaster.

 

 She grunted and pushed herself away from him, running her hand over her cheek to feel a cool mist of magic radiating from the contact point. She cracked a small fragment of the Void with her magic, sending a reflective piece of magic towards her. She grabbed it and looked at herself through the mirror. On her right cheek was now a sort of burn mark, radiating the same blue color as her magic and the reticle-shaped pupil.

 

 "Hmm..." Gaster drew closer to Zerrus's face and forced her to look at him. "Very interesting..."

 

 "Dude. Boundaries. Back up." she curtly barked out, pulling her face away from his.

 

 "Apologies. You have very interesting magic. For a human to possess magic is interesting as it is, but this type of magic is very peculiar." Gaster waved for her to come closer and let him look at her cheek. She huffed and hesitantly stepped up to him. He cupped a hand under her chin and looked at the mark. "The type of magic you seem to hold is very advanced. You can crack the very fabric of time and space, just like-."

 

 "Just like Sans."

 

 "Yes. It appears that you absorbed some of his magic. Tell me, did you come into contact with his magic while you were projecting your own?"

 

 "Let me think... I recall having problems with anti-monster rebels while monsters were on the surface. One of the attacks actually hospitalized me, but apparently I healed up on my own. The second time I was attacked, Sans teleported me. I guess my healing property was active when he did that."

 

 "Reasonable. Have you tested your powers further?"

 

 "No. Sans was training me when the world was set back a year. Frisk hasn't shown up at all and we're both concerned about that. But my priority is to destroy the barrier. I figured that maybe Frisk will show up once it's destroyed."

 

 "Ah, the child with the power to reset. I was interested in them for quite a while. However..." Gaster stepped to the side, revealing a trembling Frisk curled in a ball and whimpering.

 

 "F-Frisk!"

 

 *Techno Lady? Is that really you?* Frisk signed, wiping a tear from their eye.

 

 "Yes, it's me! What happened?! How did you get here?!" Zerrus rushed over and held Frisk tightly. Frisk sobbed silently into her arms, Zerrus holding them even tighter and rubbing gentle cirlces on their back.

 

 "The world reset in an unusual manner. I'm sure you noticed it." Gaster spoke, placing a hand on her shoulder.

 

 "The blinding light?"

 

 *The bright light took me here. I called out for help... but nobody came.* Frisk signed.

 

 "Not until now." Zerrus pat Frisk's head and stood up, balling up her fist and turning to face Gaster. "Gaster, think there may be some way for us to bust out of the void and back to reality?"

 

 "If it were easy, I would have done so already. But with you here, it may be possible."

 

 "Tell me what you have gathered. The sooner we get back to reality, the better. I can't let Zehanpuryu try to complete her mission. If she failed all those years ago due to her naivety, she'll do it again. And I can't let Frisk just be erased like this!"

 

 "There IS a way, but I don't know if you are willing to risk it."

 

 "I don't CARE! What do I have to do to get us out of this godforsaken place?"

 

 "I have been watching the different universes to find an exit. There is one that you could exploit. But are you willing to risk your morals to survive it?"

 

 "What do you mean?" Frisk tugged on Zerrus's sleeve, drawing her attention to the small child.

 

 *The only other place you could go to is bad.*

 

 "Bad? How so?" Zerrus asked, kneeling to be eye level with Frisk.

 

 *In that world, it's kill or be killed.*

 

 "They are correct, child. In order to break the seal keeping us here, one of us must venture into that world and shatter the barrier. However, I cannot traverse the different universes. Only you can." Gaster explained.

 

 "So, I'm screwed. That's great." Zerrus growled, staring at the ground and gritting her teeth.

 

 *Maybe not, Techno Lady.* Frisk signed on her shoulder. Zerrus looked up and raised her brow at the small child's words. *I know you are strong. You can survive! And I know you won't hurt them, cause you're a nice person.*

 

 "Frisk, in that universe, it is kill or be killed. If 'Techno Lady' doesn't kill, she WILL be killed." Gaster chided.

 

 *No! I know she will survive! We saw her fight Sans before! She wouldn't fight back, even though he was ready to kill her!*

 

 "You saw all that?" Zerrus gawked.

 

 "Yes. Sans was sure that you were corrupted by the reset. Safe to say that you were lucky you could convince him with your... words." Gaster stalled on his sentence.

 

 *You are the legendary fartmaster. I'm sure you can convince the other Sans you know about the resets if you do the same thing!* Frisk smiled.

 

 "You make it sound like an easy thing to do... it wasn't easy saying that without bursting out laughing in the middle of the sentence." Zerrus grumbled.

 

 "It may be the only way to convince him otherwise. If it doesn't work, well..." Gaster trailed off.

 

 *You will have to fight him.* Frisk continued.

 

 "After the first encounter I had with that bag of bones, I would rather NOT fight him. But if there really IS no other way around this..." Zerrus pushed herself to her feet and adjusted the armor plating that covered her body. "I'll give it all I've got."

 

 "Good. After all, based on what I've heard from Frisk and seen from you, I believe you can put an end to the cycle." Gaster complimented.

 

 "How do I get to that universe? It can't be as simple as wishing to go there."

 

 "You would have to sacrifice something to freely travel the timelines. I would have asked Frisk, but they are but a mere child. It would also cause a paradox within the timelines. So, you are the x factor needed to cross over."

 

 "What exactly would I have to sacrifice? Not like I can sacrifice part of my soul. I'm already down to half of my being as it is." Gaster shook his head with a slight shrug, then gestured towards a crack in the Void. "Is that the site?"

 

 "You will need to will yourself towards it. Once you step through that threshold, the Void will claim something from you, allowing you to traverse the different tangents." Zerrus went to take a step forward when Gaster placed a firm hand on her shoulder, stalling her movements. "Just remember who you are."

 

 "Like I'm gonna forget the obvious. I won't let Zehanpuryu try to take my life like it's a toy." Zerrus bounded towards the crack in the Void, violet lightning striking her directly as she connected with the split. She felt her left eye burn immensly. Shutting it tight, she felt the world rip around her.

 

 Zerrus soon found no solid ground under her, instead finding she was falling back into the forest of Snowdin. She instinctively curled into a ball and landed with a heavy thwumph as she connected with the snow. Zerrus groaned loudly and brought her hand up to her eye, feeling something wet dribble down her cheek.

 

 She pulled her hand away and saw traces of blood. Assuming the worst, she found a shard of ice and looked at her reflection on the shard. Her left eye looked like it was almost burned right around her pupil. Zerrus blunk a few times, thinking that it was just her vision messing with her like it had in the past. When she looked back in the shard, her eye was still scarred.

 

 "Looks like that was the price I had to pay." she mumbled. Tossing the shard aside, Zerrus stood up and looked down the path. "Doesn't matter. I gotta find Sans immediately."

 

 She padded forward through the snow, hearing the branch snap behind her once again. Zerrus ignored it and kept moving forward, knowing all too well that it was Sans creeping behind her. The second she stopped at the gate, she immediately turned and was met with a boney hand punching her between her eyes. She skid back slightly and rubbed her forehead.

 

 "Well now, that's a fine how-do-you-do." Zerrus grumbled under her breath. She looked up to see the familiar stocky skeleton, only he was wearing a black hoodie, a red sweater, similar black gym shorts only with mustard yellow stripes, and red sneakers with yellow socks. His grin was malicious, a single golden canine glinted in the light from the cave.

 

 "well now, ain't ya a fine lookin' human." he purred. Zerrus took a single step back and wanted to slap him for the rather inappropriate remark, but instead glared at him.

 

 "What do you want?" Zerrus demanded, only to be answered with a swift knee in her gut. She groaned loudly and coughed a tiny spatter of blood into the snow. "Fuck me..."

 

 "heh, already beggin'?"

 

 Zerrus's face immediately flushed over as she realised how poorly her choice of words really was. "Hell no! Back up, dude! I don't bend that way!"

 

 "oh?"

 

 "DamnitdamnitDAMNIT! That is NOT what I meant! Get your mind outta the gutter, boneboy!"

 

 "says the babe who brought it up."

 

 "Oi! I ain't just anybody!" Zerrus approached who she officially dubbed in her mind as 'Red' and squinted her eyes. "I... am the legendary fartmaster."

 

 Instead of being answered with the laughter from Sans, Red instead grabbed her by her hair and shoved her down into the snow. Zerrus rolled out from his grip and swiped at his legs. He hastily jumped back and chuckled darkly at her. She snarled a bit and bounded towards him, summoning a wave of chains behind her.

 

 The chains lashed out at Red, him casually teleporting out of the way and landing on Zerrus. She quickly kicked back, bringing Red with her. He pinned her arm into the snow with his foot and rolled her onto her stomach. He then stomped down on her back and laughed menacingly at her.

 

 "got alotta fight in ya, doll. but i got better plans for ya than to just kill ya. what with ya sayin' my secret codephrase an' all." Red taunted, pulling Zerrus up by her throat and staring into her eyes. "got anythin' else ta say?"

 

 "Zehanpuryu." Zerrus blunlty responded, Red slamming his fist into the side of her head and knocking her clean out.


	15. Convincing Others

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After stumbling into what is known to her as Underfell, Zerrus must push aside her anger and focus on her mission.

 

 Zerrus's head throbbed in agony, her vision still blurred. Shaking her head swiftly, she knocked herself back into reality to see Red sitting at the end of the room, staring at her. "finally up, sweetcheeks?"

 

 "Don't call me that, boneboy." Zerrus responded, attempting to stand only to find that her arms were shackled. "Care to explain?"

 

 "don't trust ya. ya know my secret phrase, yet i've never seen ya ugly face before."

 

 "What's not to trust here? I came down here to break the barrier, and that's it."

 

 Red stepped up to her and slapped her across her cheek, causing her head to lurch to the side. She spat slightly and tasted copper, knowing that the slap made her bite the inside of her cheek. Glaring back at him, Zerrus was met with his left eye glowing red instead of blue.

 

 "i know yer lyin', doll. yer eye shines darker whenever ya lie." Red chuckled, pulling Zerrus's soul out from her chest and staring at it. "not only that, but yer soul is broken. what good will yer soul do to break the barrier?"

 

 He clenched his fist around her soul, Zerrus's breath being cut off. She gasped for as much air as her lungs could get, only to have Red release her soul from his death grip. "It... doesn't matter... what my soul has become. I MUST destroy the barrier!" Zerrus yelled, her eye shining brighter.

 

 "don't think ya understand, doll. we need seven humans souls to shatter the barrier." He ran a finger along her soul, causing her to gasp sharply. "yer soul isn't even complete. it's useless."

 

 Just as those words struck Zerrus, she snapped through the shackles keeping her arms pinned and lashed at Red. The chains that once held her down were now used to hold Red in a choke hold. "Regardless of what you think, my soul is who I am! If you got a problem with that you can shove it up your ass!"

 

 Red chuckled at her anger and casually teleported free from her grip. He teleported behind her and pinned her arms over her head, using the chains she had used against him on herself. "gotta admit, ya got a lotta fight in ya. heh heh heh... and i like that."

 

 "If you think for even a minute that I'm gonna back down, you got another thing coming!"

 

 Zerrus tugged her arms up, incidentally choking herself briefly while snapping the chains in half. She spun around and managed to catch Red with a firm right hook to the jaw. His eyesockets widened in shock and looked over to her, her eye was flaring a bright flame of blue.

 

 "tell ya what babe, you promise ta keep yer word and break the barrier and i will keep ya hidden from the rest of the underground. do we got a deal?" Red offered, Zerrus calmed down only slightly but didn't drop her guard.

 

 "What's the catch? What if I can't break the barrier?" Zerrus nearly growled.

 

 "well..." Red stepped up to her and cupped her cheek, causing her to visibly flinch. "Y A  B E T T E R  H O P E  I T  W O R K S  T H E N."

 

 Smacking his hand away she scoffed. "I'm not doing this for your benefit. I need to get back to my body before Zehanpuryu fucks things up for the timeline."

 

 "heh. makes sense now."

 

 "What does?"

 

 "zehan has been causin' trouble down here for as long as i can remember. bitch had the ability to reset the timeline and she thoroughly enjoyed toyin' with us. can't even begin to tell ya how many times she would mess with my emotions."

 

 Zerrus ran her hand warily over her cheek and noticed that the burn like mark was still radiating a hint of magic. She glanced back over to Red, he was leaning casually against the wall as though nothing had happened. "Tell me what you know about her."

 

 "not much ta say. she was kind of a freak if anythin'... if ya get me."

 

 "As flattering as that may be, that's NOT the type of information I need and you know it. I need key information such as her origin and her personality."

 

 "again, there's not much ta say. she was kinda a bitch when she wasn't-" Zerrus shot Sans a vicious glare, causing him to stop in mid-sentence. "at any rate, she was pretty naggy. all she ever did was mope around and act all moody."

 

 "That sounds about right."

 

 "what do you know 'bout her?"

 

 "Nothing much really. I found her journal in the original timeline when time reset. As far as I could determine, she failed to remove a threat and ended up trapping it in the Underground. Now that threat is running rampant by possessing Frisk and forcing them to kill everyone without remorse. But since Frisk was torn from the timeline, we don't know where they are or who they will possess next."

 

 "and what does that have to do with you bein' here?"

 

 "I need your help. The only way for me to return to my timeline is if I disrupt the current in another."

 

 "when you say 'disrupt' what do ya mean by that?"

 

 "Destroying the barrier. I know there has to be some way I can destroy it without killing myself."

 

 "ya make it sound so easy, doll. not sure there is any other way. but why is it so important for ya to get back to your universe?"

 

 "Chara is a threat not only to my universe, but to others as well. If I don't help get rid of them, things will continue to spiral into chaos. But with Zehanpuryu in control of my body and most of my powers, I won't be able to put an end to this cycle."

 

 Meanwhile, Dat and Zehanpuryu were sitting in Alphys's lab. "Who would this judge be?" Dat asked.

 

 "I would assume it would be the most distant of monsters down here." Zehanpuryu responded bluntly.

 

 "Wait a moment." Dat pulled his phone out from his pocket and dialed in Sans's number. "Yo, we got a problem. Tech isn't herself."

 

 A swift second later, Sans teleported right next to Dat with his phone still up to his skull. "you called?" he calmly spoke, shutting his phone and leaning against the wall. His eyelights drifted over to Zehanpuryu and immediately darkened. "w h o  i s  t h i s?"

 

 "Zehanpuryu. She said she wants to see the judge, whoever that is."

 

 "what do you want?" Sans addressed her. She sighed deeply and drooped her head.

 

 "I need to be judged for my actions... for everything I've done..." Zehanpuryu mourned. "I've been watching through her eyes, but I could not speak. I grew impatient and forced her soul away, sending it into the void."

 

 Sans charged forward, grabbing her by her shirt and hoisting her up. "you did what?!"

 

 "That is why I need to be judged. I fear she has gotten herself into a dangerous situation."

 

 "What gives you the right to toy with her soul like that?!" Dat shouted, stepping up behind Sans and opening his grimoire.

 

 "It was not my intention. When Undyne nearly killed her, I took the chance to take over her body. I accidentally projected her soul into the void, and in turn took full control of her body. The man who speaks in hands resides within the void, and he is not happy with me."

 

 "what do you know about him?" Sans demanded, shoving Zehanpuryu higher up the wall.

 

 "Who is she talking about, Sans?" Dat inquired, glancing back and forth between them. "Who is 'the man who speaks in hands'?"

 

 "gaster. he threw himself into the core long ago. he ended up in the void, his existence erased from everyone's memories except my own." Sans dropped his gaze to the floor for a few moments, then immediately looked back to Zehanpuryu, his left eye was flaring with magic. "now tell me: what do you know about him?!"

 

 "The nightmares the heir of the Ithquant had been were actually battles between me and him. She... got roped into the middle of everything. Krosis. (Sorry.)"

 

 "Battles?" Dat questioned, closing his grimoire and tapping Sans's shoulder. He got the message and lowered Zehanpuryu to the ground.

 

 "why were you two fighting? dr. gaster wasn't one to pick fights or even partake in them unless it was crucial to his research. what did you do to make him agitated?" Sans continued to interrogate.

 

 "He saw me appear in the void and wanted to know why I was there. When I told him about Agreh (Chara), he kept questioning me. Questioning why I threw them Underground. When I refused to relive the past, he grew impatient with my refusal. He began using alternate methods of getting me to talk. It wasn't working to say the least." she explained.

 

 "How did Zerrus get caught up in this?" Dat asked.

 

 "Tozein. (Mistakes.) I was watching through cracks in time to find the Unahzaal Vahlok (Eternal Guardian) and Feyn Kulaan (Bane Prince), she caught my eye. When I helped banish Agreh to the Underground, I erected the barrier. Though, without a physical body of my own in this plane... niidro hindnu. (it's hopeless.)"

 

 "what is hopeless?" Sans murmured, stepping closer to her.

 

 "You understood me?"

 

 "zerrus read your journal. i kinda picked up on the language from hearing her. now, what is hopeless?"

 

 "Agreh cannot be defeated. I need the Unahzaal Vahlok and Feyn Kulaan alongside my powers in order to banish them forever. Zerrus has the blood of the Ithquant, a family known to have Unahzaal Vahlok within their heritage. The power was strin... sealed away from generations of constant dormancy."

 

 "Zu'u thesk vok! (I keep messing up!) When will I learn to leave things as they are? I am the one responsible for the death of my sahsun! My village! I don't want anyone else to die because of how stupid I was. I reached out to Zerrus... but when I did, some of my lu... my magic was saturated into her soul. Due to this, she is like a magic sponge. She literally absorbs whatever magic comes into contact with her while she projects her own."

 

 "So... in an attempt to talk to her, you ended up waking her powers?" Dat pondered.

 

 "Geh. (Yes.) Please Maat (Judge), I need you to judge me... to enact the appropriate punishment for everything I have done. I didn't receive any form of punishment for my failures... and I feel that now would be best."

 

 "heh... sorry buddy, but i don't judge people wearing the mask of others. once zerrus returns then we'll discuss this further. until then..." Sans waved his hand and shrugged, stepping past Zehanpuryu and glancing over his shoulder. "focus on finding her soul and bringing her back here. once we do that, we can focus on taking down Chara."

 

 "But, Agreh has not surfaced. The wahl, the construct that they usually command is nowhere to be seen. Odds are, Agreh will not show until Frisk returns."

 

 "What can you tell me about the blinding light? Was that your doing?" Dat asked, crossing his arms and staring at her.

 

 "Suz... (Figured...) you are very perceptive. I believe that my very presence within Zerrus caused the Geyol... the Spark. This may have caused Frisk to be sent somewhere that is preserved from the effects of reset. I would assume it would be-."

 

 "the void." Sans finished for her. Zehanpuryu blunk a few times and nodded. "i found out that the only reason i remember past timelines is because i have stepped into the void. so if frisk is being held somewhere safe from the reset that happened, it would be there."

 

 "Aalkos... (Perhaps...) tell me, which of the souls that you have seen contains determination?"

 

 "it would be both dat and zerrus. zerrus's soul maintains it as one of her primary traits. dat can be pretty determined too. i'm sure you already knew that though, zehan."

 

 "Vahzah (True). Nothing really gets past you, does it olqein? (skeleton?)" Sans shrugged with a chuckle, then she drew her attention over to Dat who was still staring at her. "I understand that you do not trust me. These things do not pass me so easily."

 

 "Yeah... that sure shows. You said yourself that you were responsible for the death of your village. How the hell does something like that happen anyway?" Dat growled.

 

 "it was chara." Sans answered for Zehanpuryu.

 

 "Chara? Who's that?"

 

 "Hokzii. A demon. They are a child with a simple desire to destroy everything in sight, no matter the consequences. I tried to stop them many years ago... but..." Zehanpuryu stopped in mid-sentence, taking a shaky breath. "Krosis..."

 

 "you got nothing to be sorry for. you didn't know that the brat would torment us." Sans consoled.

 

 "Folaas. (Wrong.) I knew the danger they posed to the planet and still couldn't do anything. I was so wrapped up in trying to decipher what I had learned regarding the qostiid, the prophecy, that I was blind to what was going on."

 

 "Hey, we can't see everything that happens. We ain't psychics. It was a simple mistake." Dat muttered.

 

 "it may have been a rather large one, but it was a mistake. you didn't know what would have happened. none of us know what the future holds for us." Sans continued.

 

 "Drem... (Peace...) I haven't known this feeling in eruvos... in years..." she mumbled. "You forgive me?"

 

 "in the words of a blue haired lady, i forgive but i won't forget."


	16. Engineering at its Finest

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Having won a small portion of his trust, Zerrus must now listen to his every command if she wants to survive.

  
 "How do you plan on hiding me? I'm not exactly the most subtle person in the world you know." Zerrus retorted, crossing her arms and shifting her shoulder plates slightly.

 "yeah, no shit. you can hide in my workshop. nobody ever goes down there." Red replied bluntly.

 "Workshop?"  
 

"yeah. workshop. got a problem with that, sweetcheeks?"

 "No, I DON'T have a problem with that, ASSHOLE. I'm just surprised. You don't really seem like the kind of person to HAVE a workshop. The real question is; how do you plan on getting me there without people noticing me anyways?"

 Red extended his hand out towards Zerrus and she immediately got the message: shortcut. The world faded from her vision momentarily and swiftly returned, her surroundings no longer the wooden shack she was in before, but now blue tiles in a dimly lit room. "here we are."

 "Decent size. Adequate space." Zerrus's eyes fell onto a drape-covered thing in the corner of the room. "What's that there?"

 "ah. some hunka junk that don't work. i've spent a long ass time tryin' to fix it only to have nothin' work. if you wanna waste yer time on that thing, knock yerself out." Red tugged the drape off of the machine and showed Zerrus his irritation at it by kicking it slightly. "i gotta get back to my post before boss finds out i'm missin'. don't go outside unless ya want yer soul on a platter."

 "Noted... Besides, I'm more interested in trying to find out what the hell this machine here does anyways. I'm going to try to get it running."

 "good luck..."

 With that, Red teleported out of the workshop, leaving Zerrus alone with only tools and an unknown machine. She strolled over to the machine and immediately tried powering it up, only to be responded with a dull hum then silence. Crossing her arms, she stared at the machine for a moment.

 "Power consumption discrepency... the hell does this thing run on anyways?" Zerrus mumbled to herself, inspecting around the machine to find no identifiable powercords. She noticed that all of the conjoining cables that were noticeable were all connected at the top of the machine itself.

 Zerrus glanced around the room in search of something she could step on to allow her to reach the top of the machine. The only things that weren't built in to the wall or the floor was the toolbox and a few blueprints lying around. Letting off a sigh, she hopped slightly to grip the edge of the machine. Zerrus attempted to pull herself up, but only succeeded in pulling a muscle in her shoulder.

 "Damnit! Guess I can scope around the access panels... see if there are any loose wires." she mused. Zerrus crossed over to the toolbox and brought it over to the machine, immediately flipping open the box and digging around for a screwdriver.

 Once she found the screwdriver and managed to remove the panels, she inspected each wire. Some of the wires were frayed, indicating there would be some sort of electrical current disruption. She spent a large amount of time splitting wires and refitting them into place.

 Zerrus sealed up the panels and glanced back up at the top of the machine. "I wonder if that bonebag even checked those cables..." she grumbled quietly.

 "didn't see any reason to, babe." Red rumbled behind her.

 "HOLY NUGGETS!" Zerrus squeaked, flailing backwards and smacking her head against the machine. "Thanks for the warning, Red."

 "red? that's a new one. i'm used to people callin' me 'useless' or 'asshole'." He stepped up to her and placed a boney hand on her shoulder. "but i like it. so... what have ya done so far?"

 "Well, I immediately determined the source of the problem to be a power consumption discrepency. I would have checked the top cables, but I can't get up there. So, I spent my time checking all other access panels and repaired quite a few frayed wires. I can safely assume that you didn't know how to do that based on their condition."

 "science nerd, huh? been a while since i've met a sane one."

 "I'm not necesarily a science nerd rather than an engineer. I take after my dad after all." Zerrus turned around and focused on trying to climb up the machine once again, this time stretching her arms before trying to hoist herself up. "I also take after his short stature! Which is why-!" She flopped back down after trying to climb back up, only to hear Red snort quietly. "...why I need help getting up there."

 "what do ya expect to find up there?"

 "Possibly a few loose pilings. Maybe a few more frayed cables. Everything else is intact and ready for use, everything but the cables up there." Zerrus felt Red scoop her up almost piggyback style and guided her towards the top of the machine. "Guess you aren't so bad after all."

 "what gave ya that idea, doll?" Red held up the toolbox, allowing Zerrus to pluck the screwdriver out and crawl a bit further up.

 "Well, you are far more aggressive than the Sans I know. Granted, he tried to kill me too, but he had regret in his heart. I could see that." She removed one of the couplings surrounding a cable and grimaced at the sight of the damaged wires inside. "But you, Red, when you tried to kill me... I saw hurt. Not regret. You've been hurt so much that you want to inflict the same amount of pain you've felt on others."

 "how can ya tell?"

 Zerrus leaned over and stared at Red, her eyes boring into his skull. She dropped the screwdriver into the toolbox and reached for the wirecutters. "I've seen a lot of hurt myself over the years. Between family, friends, classmates... it doesn't matter. I've seen it. I couldn't do anything besides watch at the time. I was shy, shut myself away in a shell. Afraid of others simply because I was bullied from an early age. So, I let time just flow through me, watching the course of events as it goes along."

 "Then... when I finally came out of that shell..." She snipped one of the frayed wires with an audible snip! and flicked the useless wire away. "I was hurt. And ever since, it's been hard for me to even get OUT of that shell again. I do, from time to time, but it's like I'm just poking my head out to see what's going on."

 "so yer kinda like me... only yer dealin' with it differently." Red responded to her ramblings.

 "Pretty much, yeah." Zerrus snipped one last damaged wire and immediately repaired it. "Alright, that should do it. Let me just get this coupling back on..."

 She slipped off of the machine the moment the coupling clicked into place, the force knocking her off. Red was quick enough to catch her so she wouldn't hurt herself from the fall. "so, ya think it'll work?"

 "Well... depends on whatever the hell this thing even DOES. I saw those blueprints, but I can't read wingdings. I can only read eternal guardian and english." Zerrus dusted her hands and stepped over to the power panel. Once she pressed the button, the machine whirred to life. "Huh. How long did you say you were trying to fix this?"

 "too long. besides, those fuckin' resets always backset my work."

 "True, true. Now, what does this machine do?"

 "well, the old royal scientist was testing a hypothesis of his; interdimensional travel. i thought it was crazy, until you showed up." Zerrus raised an eyebrow. "you have never shown up before in any of the previous timelines. not to mention, you said yerself that i'm not like the sans you know. so that proved it even more. yer soul has an unknown Level Of Violence, which is wierd for anyone. that means that yer LV is determined based on the actions of the universe yer in."

 "Actually, the first time Sans checked my stats, my LV was 90. I just learned recently that it was actually Zehanpuryu's LV. Which makes sense, since we found her journal and read it. It was encrypted in the language of the Eternal Guardians, so only I could read it. Whatever she's done to accumulate such a high amount of LV, it's strong enough to-."

 "to traverse the different universes."

 "Right."

 "she could be a real problem for the structure of all the timelines."

 "That's why I gotta stop her." Red huffed and pulled Zerrus's soul free from her chest. Her eyes darted between him and her exposed soul.

 "listen doll, you ain't gonna bring her down with a soul like that. she stole half of yer soul to give her a physical body again."

 "Yeah... MY body."

 "point is; if you wanna bring her down, yer gonna have to fill in the blank spaces."

 "And how do you propose we do that? It's not like someone's got half a soul lying around on a park bench!"

 "yer not gonna like the idea."

 Zerrus growled, her soul lurching back into her body as she charged forward, grabbing Red's shirt. "Does it really look like I give a damn?! Quite frankly, the welfare of the structure of time and space is FAR more important than my like or dislike of any method we can utilize to allow me to stop her!"

 "look doll, the only reason i'm sayin' yer not gonna like it is cause i can see who ya really are." Zerrus eased the grip on his shirt and cocked her head slightly. "yer too kind to want to bring harm to others unless they've done ya wrong. and the only way yer gonna get a body of yer own again is if you take somethin' that isn't yours."

 "Explain."

 "i'm sure ya know by now that we have six human souls at the capital." She nodded in response, her grip easing even further. "well babe, yer gonna have to absorb them."

 With a loud growl, Zerrus flung Red into the wall and pinned him down. "What do you take me for?! I know what that entails! I've read the plaques in Waterfall, and I'm not STUPID enough to risk it! I don't WANT to become a being of unimaginable power since all power does is corrupt the minds of those who wield it over time!"

 "i thought ya said yerself that you don't care whether or not you like or dislike the idea."

 "This is different! If I go through with this method, there's a very high chance that I will not longer be ME! According to the legend of the Eternal Guardians, those chosen who obtained extraordinary powers eventually went mad with power. They abused those powers and were snuffed out by other Eternal Guardians! The only other Eternal Guardian is my soulmate and I would rather NOT deal with his magic!"

 "whatever this 'eternal guardian' shit is won't help you. yer soul is splitting every minute. the longer you wait, the closer you are to death. if ya want to avoid dyin', ya got no choice."

 Zerrus let go of Red's shirt and stepped back with a huff, running her hands through her hair. She paced back and forth, organizing her thoughts and trying to find some sort of method they could use that doesn't involve her absorbing the six human souls. Zerrus stopped in front of the blueprint laid out nearby and looked over them.

 "There HAS to be another way..." she murmured. Red chuckled darkly at her remark, causing her to turn and look at him with a heated glare.

 "what? do ya plan on goin' up against zehan and takin' back yer body or somethin'?" Red laughed.

 "There's gotta be some sort of compromise. She's supposed to be dead. It's been roughly 200 years since she died based on the records. Her soul still lived on, and she wants to find a way to redeem herself. To finish what she started." Zerrus began pacing back and forth again. "Maybe I can find some sort of way to form a contract with her. To bind her soul with mine until we solve the problem."

 "now hold on there, sweetcheeks. yer talkin' about some seriously dangerous soul magic there. what makes ya think you can even handle such a complicated spell?"

 "She clearly has done it already. She was hiding in my soul, trying to reach out to me through some sort of communication attempt. Maybe she feels that I may be the only one who can help her with this problem."

 "bein' the target of a soul contract and castin' the spell are two different matters! if you try it, ya might shatter what's left of yer soul!"

 "Well, it's either that or go mad with power and being executed by my soulmate!"

 "just shut up and listen for a minute, will ya?! there may be a chance ya won't go mad." She looked up at Red and crossed her arms, showing to him that she was listening. "i just checked yer soul while you were thinkin'. you won't absorb the whole soul, but a small piece."

 "You aren't really making any sense. Based on what I've read, a monster can absorb a human soul, but a human can't absorb another human's. If I'm going to absorb a fragment of their soul, what kind of transaction would occur?"

 "you aren't entirely human. i'm sure you already figured that out, sweetcheeks. but you aren't a monster either. whatever happens while you interact with the soul will be a mystery to me. but then again, yer already a mystery."

 "Oh thanks. That sure helps my self-esteem." She lightly punched his shoulder and went back to the machine. "So this thing is supposedly capable of bringing me to another universe?"

 "based on the notes the royal scientist left behind, yeah."

 "Good. That means, once I decide what the hell I'm gonna do to restore my soul, I will be able to return to my universe."

 Zerrus grunted as a sharp pain shot through her chest, causing her to buckle forward. Red immediately ran to her side and held her up, calling out her soul and inspecting the damage. A few flakes of her soul fluttered off of its surface and to the floor.

 "ya better decide soon, doll. yer soul won't last long." Red muttered.


	17. Split

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zerrus is running out of time. She has to act fast before her soul splits and her entire being flakes away.

  
 "dat? dat! c'mon, snap out of it!" Sans shouted at Dat, lightly smacking his cheek to jostle him awake. Dat shot up out of Sans's grip, gasping for air and looking around the room frantically. "zehan, what the hell happened to him?"

 "Grin... The bond he and Ithquant share. He is feeling her soul splitting apart." Zehanpuryu started. She paced over to the wall and called her soul, the small white and gold heart fluttering in her hands. "When I took control, her sil... her soul was fractured, sent to the void. But the effects of the split shouldn't be occuring. Uful... I worry that she has found herself in another place."

 "Another place?" Dat asked, standing up and walking over to Zehanpuryu.

 "Geh. (Yes) No doubt the man who speaks in hands has something to do with this."

 "wait. gaster isn't the kind of man to simply send someone somewhere when he knows the risk. something must have happened to her." Sans interjected.

 "How can you be so sure of that, Olqein? (Skeleton)" she retorted.

 "Sans." Dat called over to him, drawing his attention over to him. "Zerrus kept a journal with her. She took it when she came down here in case she needed to jot down some info. Think she wrote anything in there that can help us?"

 "maybe. but i'm not in the right position to do something like that." he replied, stuffing his hands into his hoodie pocket and looking away from them.

 "Poguk? (Choice) What other choice do we have? If she suspected something, she would have written it down." she added.

 "you may be right. but i'm not in any liberty to go through her belongings. unlike someone."

 "Sahvol? (Excuse) Is that directed at me?"

 "Well, you ARE in her body. You have already taken something that doesn't belong to you." Dat pointed out.

 "Friikir! I have already apologized for my mistake on that part! Is it really that far beyond jul... beyond humans that you can't accept them?!"

 "S-Stop it! All of y-you!" Alphys shouted from the doorway. Everyone's attention was drawn to the timid monster as she wrung her claws together. "Z-Zerrus will be fine! Undyne t-told me what her s-soul looked like. You know... before..."

 "Are you sure?" Dat inquired, rushing over to Alphys and bending down to where he was eye level with her.

 "Positive! That punk's got a lot of fight in her. She wants to make amends for the actions of her ancestors. She won't give up so easily." Undyne chimed, stepping up to Alphys and planting a hand on her shoulder.

 "Saraan... (Wait) You are the kendov... the warrior I saved Ithquant's soul from. Why do you want to help now?" Zehanpuryu questioned, stepping closer to Undyne and brushing a strand of hair from her cheek.

 "Because she was right. She has a fire in her to keep pushing on. To keep everyone's hopes and dreams alive! I was so mad at humans for what they did that I wouldn't listen to her. If it weren't for that monster over there stepping in the way and saying how you wouldn't hurt us, you would be dead."

 "My name's Dat, and I'm not a monster. I'm actually an Eternal Guardian." Dat interrupted, stepping up to Zehanpuryu and glancing at her. "As for her? She's not the same Zerrus as before. Zerrus's soul is somewhere else at the moment. This lady's just using her body until we can get her back."

 "Votrul... it's not as simple as that." she mumbled. Everyone turned to look at her in surprise. "Due to the splitting of her soul, it won't be as simple as finding her soul and putting it back into her body."

 "Then what the hell is it going to take?! The longer Zerrus is away from her body, the more I feel like my soul is being ripped!"

 "I don't know! Stiildus! (Calm)"

 "try to understand from dat's standpoint, zehan. he feels like his entire being is bing torn apart. if i were him, i'd want to put an end to the pain as well." Sans interjected.

 "It isn't about the pain, Sans! I can feel something else resonating in my soul... Zerrus is still alive, but she's being pushed towards something. Whatever it is... it can't be good for any of us." Dat mumbled.

 "Kusah... (Interesting) You are saying that you can feel a vulz... a pulse from her soul?" Zehanpuryu mused.

 "I don't know what the hell it is. I just feel a dark power gnawing at Zerrus's soul."

 "Gnawing? What do you mean, kaal? (Champion)"

 Meanwhile, Zerrus was sitting next to the machine she had repaired for Red, attempting to modify the results for a direct travel destination. A knock was heard at the metal door to his workshop, causing her to pause and strut over to the door. She knocked twice, signaling that she was still there.

 The door swung open violently, knocking Zerrus back and hitting the wall with brute force. "Damnit...!" she winced loudly, reaching behind her to rub her lower back. She looked up to see a much darker version of Papyrus standing in the doorway. His normal cartoony looking battlebody was now replaced with a very menacing version.

 "WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING, HUMAN?" he sneered.

 "What makes you think I'm a human?" she replied smartly. He growled out and grabbed Zerrus by her throat, hoisting her up and off of the floor and in the air. She gagged slightly and instinctively put her hands over his in a feeble attempt to pry his hand loose.

 "DO YOU THINK I'M STUPID? I CAN SMELL YOUR SOUL VERY CLEARLY! IT HAS SUCH A POTENT SCENT."

 "What... you sayin' I stink or somethin'?" He snarled louder, slamming her back into the wall with force. "JESUS! Calm down will ya?!"

 "YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO ORDER ME AROUND, FILTH!"

 "boss, what's goin' on in he-...?" Red stopped mid-sentence upon seeing Zerrus pinned against the wall and groaning in pain from the consistant assault on her spine. "boss!"

 "DID YOU KNOW ABOUT HIM?!" The evil version of Papyrus, she mentally dubbed as 'Edge', shouted.

 "I'm not a-" Zerrus began to protest as Edge slammed her back into the wall again. She grunted this time and shot a glare that could burn holes into obsidian. "That's ENOUGH!"

 A magic pulse jarred Edge's hand away, sending him reeling back from the spell. A latice of magic patterns covered her bare arms, each one swirling around to trace her muscle. The part of her left eye that looked burned was now glowing a vibrant blue, a flame of magic licking the top of her head. Her hair sprouted almost immediately to her calves, the sudden change in attitude confusing Red.

 "I'm not gonna stand here and be pushed around like someone's plaything! Unless you want your fuckin' ribs busted, BACK OFF NOW!" she shrieked, balling up her fist with a magical blanket. Her gaze immediately flickered over to Red who was stunned by her sudden outburst of rage. "Where the hell were you, Red?! In case you haven't noticed, I'm not too keen about bein' left alone when there's the potential of a psychopathic edge lord tryin' to kill me!"

 "tech... just-" Red mumbled.

 "Don't try to weasle out of this! Couldn't you have- HNGH!" Zerrus collapsed on to her knees, a stab of pain coursing through her whole body. A burst of rainbow energy puffed out around her, causing the extra armor platings she was wearing to shatter.

 "tried to warn ya..."

 "WHAT DID THE HUMAN DO JUST NOW, SANS?" Edge almost demanded as she tried to push herself to her feet.

 "it was somethin' i read about called a sil kaag. it means 'soul burst'. the rage she had bottled up exploded, but there's a problem..." Red held out his hand and pulled it back like opening a door, Zerrus's splitting soul fluttering just in front of her. "somethin' happened to her to cause her soul to split in half."

 "AND WHY ARE YOU HIDING THIS MAGE?"

 "Mage? I'm not a mage." Zerrus grunted, finally pushing herself up on unsteady legs.

 "not accordin' to yer soul. yer definitely a mage of some sort. hell, ya just blasted us with an advanced form of soul magic." Red explained.

 "WHY ARE YOU HIDING THEM, SANS?" Edge growled at Red, causing Red to lock up slightly.

 "c-cause if we can fix her soul, she can break the barrier usin' a full power soul burst."

 "What's the difference if I try to use a full power burst now?" she inquired.

 "yer soul is split in half and witherin' away by the minute, remember? if ya try to use a full burst, yer gonna end up shatterin' yer soul like ya did to your armor." Red sent Zerrus's soul back to the confines of her chest then bent down, picking up a piece of the shattered armor. "yer armor was made of soul magic as well. when you burst, ya broke part of yer soul."

 "Well shit, that ain't good."

 "Soul burst?" Dat asked as Zehanpuryu struggled to stand.

 "Yes... Zerrus became gerahgol... enraged to the point that her lu, magic exploded in one burst." she muttered, Alphys rushing over to help her up to her feet.

 "But why did it affect you?"

 "I-it's because she is in h-her body. Th-there's still a connection b-between her soul a-and her body." Alphys explained to them.

 "Geh. If she used a soul burst, she has to be in another lein... another universe." she murmured.

 "another universe..." Sans mumbled more to himself than anybody.

 "Olqein? Do you know something?"

 "what makes you think i know something?"

 "You're acting very grunir. (suspicious)"

 "i don't know what you're talkin' about." Sans brushed by her and pulled Dat by his hoodie.

 "Waaah?! Sans! What the hell! Where are you takin' me?!" he exlcaimed as darkness surrounded him, suddenly finding himself in a tiled room with an object covered by a drape in the corner. "What the hell? Where are we?"

 "i brought you to my workshop. knowing zerrus, she's gotta be here." Dat looked around the room and scowled.

 "Hate to break it to you, but she isn't here."

 "not in this plane. she's in another universe all together. but knowing how she works, she's gonna be in here."

 "Are you sure?" Sans curlty nodded. "Why are we here then?"

 "i'll need your help fixing the machine. it's gonna be our only way of getting her back here safely."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is an extra chapter to compensate for my lack of update during the holidays. Thank you for bearing with me on that.


	18. Dreaming of Freedom

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> All she wants... is to be free...

  
 Zerrus paced back and forth in the room, writing notes on the notepad Red had given her. She tapped the pen on her lip and huffed. Edge was staring at her with hawk eyes, not letting her out of his sight. "You know you don't have to stare at me..." she grumbled.

 "I STILL DON'T TRUST YOU. SANS MIGHT, BUT I DON'T. NOW SHUT UP." Edge curtly responded. She huffed again and went back to the machine, powering it up and staring at the sequences that dashed along the display. Zerrus went to enter a location into the sequence when the machine spat out a cloud of ash into her face.

 Coughing and reeling backwards, she stumbled into Edge, who growled in protest. Zerrus immediately pushed herself up and away from him, strutting back over to the machine and inspecting the damage. The interior was intact, but the panel she was using had exploded into multiple shards. She instinctively checked her body for any shards or burns from the explosion.

 Quickly passing it over, she averted her attention back to the machine. Zerrus immediately noticed there were a few wires hanging loosely from the damaged panel. Huffing in annoyance, she crouched down and inspected the damage even further. Due to the explosion, the wires that weren't replaced had become frayed. She turned and looked over to Edge, he was looking away from her.

 "I could use some help." Zerrus grumbled to him.

 "I SEE NO POINT IN HELPING YOU. YOU CAN FIX THIS YOURSELF." Edge retorted.

 "No need to be so snatchy..." She heard the distinct sound of someone snickering nearby and turned towards the source. Edge also brought his focus to the source of the laughter.

 "SANS... GET OUT HERE AND HELP THE HUMAN FEMALE!"

 "Oh... now you figure out I'm a female..."

 "heh. sure boss." Red calmly replied, teleporting in front of Zerrus and causing her to jump backwards. He chuckled slightly at her reaction and leaned against the wall. "what's the problem, doll?"

 "Stop calling me that!"

 "why? you haven't made any attempts to stop me. why should i bother stopping now when you haven't tried to?"

 "Don't push me, boneboy!" Zerrus took a single step towards him, balling up her fist and glaring down at him.

 "why do ya get so pissy when i call ya that?" She turned away from him in a huff and went to grab the toolbox. He snatched up the toolbox from her and chuckled. "what? not talkin' to me now, doll?"

 Zerrus stood up from her crouched position and grabbed his hoodie. She pulled him up to her eye level and glared. She sighed and shoved him away from her and bent back down to the damaged panel. "Y'know... I'm not an idiot. You two don't have to hover around me like I'm a toddler bound to get into trouble."

 "WE DON'T KNOW THAT FOR SURE, HUMAN." Edge rumbled from his corner.

 "Look, I barely stood a chance against you two. My soul is in NO condition to enter confrontations. I don't plan on leaving the safety of this workshop unless being escorted by you guys."

 Zerrus crawled under the access panel and yanked out a shard of metal jutting into a wire. She tossed the fragment aside, not even caring where it landed. She heard a low rumble, thinking it was her stomach at first when Red pulled her out from her work by her foot. "look doll, yer in big trouble already. yer soul is powerful enough to destroy us all with a single soul burst. so ya gotta understand why we're so concerned 'bout all this."

 "I understand NOTHING, you ignorant asswipe! I'm not a genocidal dickweed that's gonna sacrifice myself just to destroy monsters for no reason!" Zerrus kicked at Red until her foot was released, then slid herself back under the panel. "So get your paranoia in check before I GIVE you a reason to be paranoid."

 A muffled chuckle sounded from Edge's corner, causing her to peek out from behind her raised arms and look at him. "SUCH A BLIGHTED RESPONSE FROM A 'HERO'. DO YOU REALLY THINK THAT WE CAN TRUST YOU NOT TO RUN?"

 "Again; my soul is in no condition to enter confrontations. If I could barely handle Red and yourself, what makes you think I'd be able to handle any other monsters? And, as Red said, my soul is slowly breaking apart. Once it splits, I'm done."

 Edge and Red were whispering at the corner of the workshop, leaving Zerrus to return to fixing the new broken panel. She huffed in annoyance at their hard-headedness and the constant setbacks regarding her lineage. The back of her hand caught on a sharp piece of metal and stuck. She winced loudly, refusing to move her hand in any sudden motion in risk of cutting herself deeply on the filthy metal.

 Closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, she slowly wiggled her hand free from the metal piece, the sharp edges cutting into the back of her hand slightly. A corner of the jagged edges dug deeper into her hand, causing her to jerk back reflectively. "FUCK!" she shouted.

 Red grabbed her ankle and pulled her out from under the machine, her right hand covering her left to stop the bleeding as best she could. "what'd ya do?"

 "The fuck does it look like, Red?!" He pried her right hand away from her left, gripping her wrist tightly and causing the blood to flow out faster. Her vision started to blur from the burning pain from the possibly infected wound, her breathing starting to slow. "F-fucking... idiot..."

 Violet lightning again... she was back in the void. "Gaster? Frisk? You there?" A familiar tug on her sleeve caused her to turn around and looked down at a concerned Frisk. "Hey, buddy. How are you holding up?"

 *Techno Lady... your soul...* they signed with a deep frown drawn on their face. Zerrus instinctively called out her soul and inspected the damage. Her normally bright blue and red soul was now a very dim blend.

 "I must say, I am impressed." Gaster chimed in. Zerrus turned to look a him as he stepped up behind Frisk, laying a gentle hand on their shoulder. "You managed to convince Underfell Sans that you are no threat."

 "Underfell? Is that what you call it?" Zerrus asked, cocking her head slightly.

 "It seemed fitting. As Frisk has told you, there is something wrong with your soul."

 "The split. Yeah I know about that."

 *It's not just splitting, Techno Lady. You are disappearing.*

 "Disappearing? How?! Sans told me that due to my soul containing determination, I can't just disappear! I'll be dead for a short time, but I'll turn back time to before I died."

 *He told you about the resets then...*

 "It's no secret to me, Frisk. Sans may have an exceptionally fortified wall to hide his emotions, but when you're like me, you can see through those defenses. I told him that. And he disclosed everything to me." Gaster hummed slightly behind them, causing her to look up at him. "What's up, Gaster?"

 "I've watched Sans from the void for as long as I can remember. He tries not to let anyone in after I disappeared." Gaster paces over towards her, placing a gentle hand on the top of Zerrus's head and patting it. "The fact he told you anything means that he likes you."

 "Likes me? I sure hope you mean in a friendly manner and not a romantic manner..."

 *Sans knows you are married to Fox Man. He wouldn't try anything like that. He likes you as if you are family.* Frisk signed, smiling brightly at her.

 "It's true, Ithquant." a familiar female voice rang out across the void. Zerrus shot up to her feet and spotted her body on the other end of the space they were in.

 "YOU!" she snapped, lunging at Zehanpuryu in an attempt to attack her. She came face to face with an invisible wall, causing her to fall on her ass. "You've got a lot of nerve showin' your face around me!"

 "Mindok... I know. You must be unconscious if you are in this plane now."

 "Yeah... no thanks to Red."

 "Red... you mean Sahqo? The red skeleton?" Zerrus nodded, glaring at Zehanpuryu even more. "He probably mistook you for me. After all, you are in my body."

 "And you're in mine! Give me back my body, you lunatic!"

 "Vokorasaal... I can't do that."

 "And why not? You better not be pushin' me around cause quite frankly..." Zerrus inched closer to her so as not to let Frisk hear her. "...you're on my shitlist, bitch."

 "Krosis. It was not in my plans to send you here... I know the void is a solemn place."

 "How would you know that?"

 "Because... I was once trapped here, much like him." Zerrus turned to face Gaster and shot a confused look. He nodded slowly as confirmation to her unspoken question. "It all happened 200 years ago, when I sealed Agreh's soul within the Nebengol... the Underground. I just barely managed to keep my soul alive during the sil kaag, thus banishing Agreh. It was the price I had to pay to keep the lein... the world safe."

 "Why send Chara to the Underground? Couldn't you have sealed them somewhere more secretive?"

 "Is that what they are called now? Chara?" She nodded and gestured for Zehanpuryu to continue. "Well... it was a spur of the moment kind of situation, Ithquant. It was either try something then and there, or let the world be destroyed by the devil incarnate. When I sacrificed my physical body to preserve the planet, I found myself here. Floating endlessly through time and space. That's when I met him."

 *But Gaster isn't 200 years old, Pur. How long were you here?* Frisk signed.

 "Yeah! As far as my intuition counts, Gaster is at least in his mid 40s." Zerrus blurted, gesturing to Gaster and waving her hands slightly.

 "Allow me." Gaster responded, stepping closer to Zerrus and gently pushing Frisk along with him. "Zehanpuryu was here before I arrived. Their soul was fractured, and splitting apart."

 "Just like mine is now..." she mumbled more to herself than out loud.

 "Geh, Ithquant. If you don't do something soon... you'll disappear from existance." Zehanpuryu mumbled.

 "This is YOUR fault, y'know!"

 "Fos? (What)"

 "My soul was perfectly fine until YOU came along and commandeered my body! What gave you the audacity to simply take something that doesn't belong to you!" Zehanpuryu was about to respond when Zerrus continued with her rant. "You died 200 years ago! You did your part, now let me and Dat do ours!"

 "Ithquant. Calm d-"

 "DON'T YOU TELL ME TO CALM DOWN! I have every fucking RIGHT to be pissed off at you right now! I know that you want to stop Chara once and for all, but causing the erasure of another is NOT the way to do it!" Zerrus broke through the invisible wall cutting her off from Zehanpuryu and grabbed her by her shirt collar. "If you had just been PATIENT none of this would've happened, you dipshit! I read your journal and know what happened. Sans and I came to the agreement of waiting for Chara to rear their ugly face for us to strike! But NO! You had to go and FUCK EVERYTHING UP!"

 Shoving her away, Zerrus stepped back and brought her hand to her chest. She could feel her soul flaking even more, causing her to look back to Frisk and Gaster. Both of them had very surprised looks etched on to their faces. She sighed and turned her attention back to Zehanpuryu, who looked guilty and shocked at her outburst.

 The silence finally broke after several moments of stares.

 "You're right, Ithquant... I keep making mistakes. I was selfish and foolhardy. But..." Zehanpuryu looked up at Zerrus, a single tear falling down her cheek. "I plan on making this right. But I need to ask a favor of you."

 "I don't owe you anything." Zerrus retorted, crossing her arms and shifting her stance slightly to that of an intimidating one.

 "I know that, but... lig (please)... please understand that I'm going to make it up to you."

 Heaving an irritated sigh, Zerrus looked back up at her. "What do you need me to do?"

 "Tell Sahqo I'm sorry... and tell him this; bii kun fen aak lein wah stin." With that, Zehanpuryu vanished before them, leaving Zerrus sputtering and her eyes darting across the space.

 *What did she say?* Frisk asked, stepping closer to her.

 Just as she began to tell them, she was yanked back into Underfell. She jolted up, gasping for air and frantically looking around. Her eyes landed on a familiar skeleton sitting across the room, staring at her intensely.

 "finally up, doll?" he asked, causing Zerrus to scowl at the petname. "yer soul decided to go fer a walk. couldn't wake ya up thanks to that stunt ya pulled."

 "Stunt? Psh... bite me, bitch..." she grumbled, looking away from Red. "I didn't pull shit. You're the one who decided to squeeze my wrist and cause me to faint."

 "whatever, babe." He strutted over to her, placing his hand on the center of her chest and pulled her soul free from the confines of her ribcage. The partially broken soul was held together by a golden light, almost like glue. "somethin' happened while you were nappin'."

 "Yeah. Saw a familiar face... Sahqo." Red stalled at the name and looked at Zerrus. "By the way; bii kun fen aak lein wah stin."

 He pulled his hand away, allowing her soul to return to her chest. "i hope she's right cause i'll be honest with ya buddy, ya don't seem like much ta me."

 "Never judge a book by its cover, Red. You'll be surprised just how wrong your judgement is."

 "the blue light will guide the world to freedom... i hope she's right about this."

 "You and me both, pal. You and me both."


	19. Dat's Dangerous Dance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dat takes control and ventures to find the one who spilled the beans.

  
 "So... Zerrus chewed your head off?" Dat asked Zehanpuryu, leaning against the machine he and Sans were working on. She nodded slowly. "Way to go. You pissed her off."

 "If that wasn't clear, then I'm a really oblivious warrior. Of course she's mad. I ruined her life." she responded, slouching against the wall slightly. "I promised her I would make this right. I managed to stall the split... but it won't last very long."

 Dat flicked his tail slightly and twitched his ear, narrowing his eyes at Zehanpuryu. "We need as much time as we can get. You know that. And if I know Tech, she won't stay mad at you for long."

 "What makes you say that, ilit (fox)?"

 "She may be mad at you now, but since you stopped the split for a while, she won't stay that way. She'll still be irritated and probably won't forgive you for this mess, but she won't be as mad as she is now."

 "Are you sure?" Dat nodded.

 "for the short time i've known her, she's quite a character." Sans added, crawling out from under the machine to look at the two of them. "she's had a rough life, been through a lot of strife in the past, she's got her determination set."

 "It's her determination that's keeping her alive, isn't it Sans?" Dat inquired.

 "yeah. the last time i dealt with someone with that much determination was frisk. but i have no clue where the kid could be."

 "They are in the void, olqein." Zehanpuryu answered, stepping towards him cautiously. "Zerrus was there with them. Along with the man who speaks in hands."

 After a while of working on the machine, the three decided to retire inside the house. Sans was sitting on the couch while Dat read through the notes Zerrus had written down in her journal.

 After busting my ass trying to get down here, I was attacked by a damn flower of all things. They said their name was Flowey... seems a little cliché to me. He... she... whatever the hell it is, tried to get me to raise my LOVE. I'm not stupid enough to do that.

 Toriel saved me luckily... but she didn't remember me at all. It's like the world was set back by a whole year. It's strange to me.

 I plan on leaving the Ruins tomorrow. I just hope that Toriel doesn't try to stop me. I don't want to risk causing any problems.

 "A talking flower? Wow." he mused to himself.

 Well... glad I didn't piss off Sans. Damn skeleton tried to kill me when I mentioned his name. I can forgive him for that since the reset clearly affected his memory in the slightest, but he came to his senses when I said his "codephrase". I think he just wanted me to look like an idiot...

 Whatever happened at that time made Dat teleport all the way from our house to here in the Underground. I still don't completely understand, but I got the gist of it. My soul cried out for help, and Dat's soul responded. It seems pretty simple.

 "find anything useful, dat?" Sans asked, causing Dat to nearly toss the book across the room.

 "Just a recap." he bluntly responded, bringing his attention back to the journal. "I'm hoping to find some sort of clue. Maybe she wrote something down that can help us, y'know?"

 Something Dat did earlier made me into a freaking furry! Granted, it's definitely better than having to deal with freaking pixie ears all the damn time... but now I look like a plushie! I'm glad that Sans lent me some of his clothes, but I am NOT happy about the fact he undressed me.

 That aside, I spent my time in the library hoping to learn more about this soul bonding shit. I understand it, no problem. But the fact it happened still confuses me. The bonding itself is complicated, yet Dat and I don't remember doing anything like that. Maybe we are some sort of reincarnation?

 After reading a strange journal I found in the library, I'm starting to piece together whatever is going on here. This Zehanpuryu died 200 years ago trying to stop Chara. Sans reacted funny when I said 'Chara' and that seemed very suspicious.

 Once I asked him, everything started to make sense. Our magic awakening, the reset without Frisk, it's all thanks to her. She wants to stop Chara using one of us as a conduit. She forced a reset so that she could do it.

 After what Sans told me about Chara, I can see why Zehanpuryu is trying so hard to end them. We just need to wait.

 The rest of the pages were blank due to Zerrus no longer being in this universe. An advertisement on the TV caught Dat's attention.

 "Beauties and gentle beauties, we have important news!" a rectangular shaped robot sing-songed. "Rumor is that there are TWO lovely souls hiding out in Snowdin. And the best part, darlings? They are soulmates!"

 "Wha-? How did he?" Dat stuttered.

 "I would absolutely ADORE meeting them face-to-face here on my show." The ramblings continued from the robot, Dat shutting the book with a slam and turning towards Sans.

 "mettaton..." Sans grumbled.

 "Where is he, Sans?" Dat almost demanded. Sans shook his head, causing Dat to growl. "Look, I gotta find out what he knows. Someone spilled the beans and I wanna know who!"

 "he's a gossip, dat."

 "I don't give a shit! Where is he?!"

 "MTT resort at the end of hotland." Dat nodded and pulled up his hood, turning towards the front door. "i think this is a bad idea."

 "Can it, Sans."

 Dat rushed over to Hotland as fast as he could, skidding to a halt in front of the MTT Resort. He kept his hood over his head and trudged inside the resort. Hanging his head low, he pushed by many monsters on his way towards the counter. "Welcome to the MTT Resort! Will you be staying at our hotel, or are you passing through?" greeted the man behind the desk.

 "Where's Mettaton?" Dat bluntly asked. The man behind the counter stalled, looking around the lobby for any monsters too close by.

 "A lot of monsters are asking to meet him since his announcement. Can I ask why you want to see him?"

 "None of your business, bitch."

 "So it must be you..." Dat went to demand an answer when he held up his hand. "Name's Krogiir Luhaallok. You can call me Kro."

 "Fine... what do you know about this mess, Kro?"

 "I don't know who told Mettaton about you guys, but someone down here wants you discovered. I can tell you guys are cloaking your souls so they don't see you are humans. And the ears and tail? Nice touch."

 Dat remained silent, shooting Kro a glare.

 "Mettaton actually wants to see you two in person. He wants to take your souls for more viewers on his show."

 "Doesn't surprise me much. Everyone's out to kill us. Now... where is he?"

 "You'll find him near the core. But I gotta warn you: he's pretty... uh... flamey?"

 "Oh that helps..." Dat pushed by the double doors, completely dissing Kro and stomping past many other monsters.

 He came up to a doorway with red neon etching it, causing him to stop and try to look in. The room was far too dark for him to see inside. Suddenly, something somehow yanked him in to the room, sending him flying forward and crashing into the ground. "Why hello, darling." sing-songed a familiar voice.

 "Mettaton." Dat pushed himself up to his feet, staring at the rectangular robot. "I gotta ask something."

 "Oh I know what you want to ask, beauty. Unfortunately, you have to outshine the brightest star in the Underground to find out!"

 Dat was blinded almost immediately as fog and bright stage lights shone down in the once pitch black room. He squinted to see through the fog, only to find that the robot now resembled that of a diva, if a rather gay looking one.

 Finally catching on to Kro's warning, Dat instinctively summoned his magic. Black and white feathers danced around him and Mettaton. The sound of an audience cheering loudly caught him off guard, causing him to turn to face the source. Due to the distraction, Mettaton took advantage by dancing towards him, kicking at him and blinding him with the lights reflecting off of his chasis.

 Dat staggered back, doing his best to block the onslaught of elegant kicks while keeping the light out of his eyes. Mettaton then swept Dat's legs out from under him, causing him to bust his ass hard on the stage. A string of 'boos' rung out in the room.

 Swishing his tail violently and jumping back to his feet, he stared down Mettaton. "Yo, if you're such a bright star, why are ya being such a dimwit?!"

 "Ohh~ clever, darling. But words won't stop me." he taunted back.

 Mettaton twirled into a piroette, kicking Dat in his gut multiple times until he skid backwards. He stumbled gracelessly until he hit a solid wall. "Hey!" shouted a male voice. He glanced back, keeping Mettaton partially in his sights and twitched his ears in the direction of the voice. "Shake Dat Booty, Dat!"

 Almost keeling over in laughter, he instead focused on shuffling backwards away from Mettaton. He rushed towards Mettaton in a sort of charge, only to jump over the diva and twirl gracefully in the air. Landing with a handstand, he kicked backwards while using his tail to keep him balance. A chorus of 'woos' rung out.

 Flipping onto his feet, he twirled around to face Mettaton, who was still stunned by the grace of his landing. "Very impressive, darling. But it'll take more than that to outshine me!" Mettaton nearly grumbled.

 "Look Mettaton, I just wanna find out what you heard! Who told you about us?!" Dat shouted, shimmying towards him while seemingly bouncing in tune with the music resonating from him. "Who told you that we were here?"

 "Oh such a dramatic demand from an underdog."

 "I'm not playing around! Star or not, you can't just USE us for ratings!" Crouching down and cartwheeling backwards, Dat kicked off the ground and charged him. His fist, laced with light and dark magic, connected with Mettaton's chasis, causing his hand to throb from punching solid metal while a satisfying clink! resonated through the room. The metal of his chasis was bent slightly from the impact.

 Suddenly, Mettaton's limbs burst into multiple pieces causing his torso to fall on the ground. "All we wanted to do was destroy the barrier... to apologize for our ancestors! And we won't let anyone get in our way." Hoisting Mettaton's remaining body up off the floor, Dat carried him back towards Alphys's lab. "But it doesn't mean we'll kill."

 "Darling... you truly are a bright star." Mettaton mumbled, just before his eyelights darkened.


	20. Dive

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zerrus is still in Underfell, her plans to reach the barrier not gone unfocused.

  
 Zerrus shot up off of the dogbed Red had placed her on, nearly stumbling gracelessly on the floor. Quickly catching herself, she staggered towards the pack lying on the table across the room. Picking up the bag, she browsed through the contents. Inside was her notepad, a set of Red's clothes, and a cloak. On top of the cloak was a note taped to the fabric. Picking up the note, she read it.

 i know how to get you back to your timeline.  
 change into this and meet me at grillby's.

 "The dog I saw back in my universe sniffed me when I looked like Sans. What if they do it again?" Zerrus mumbled to herself. Taking a quick whiff of the clothes, she reeled back at the strong scent of mustard. "HOLY! Good GOD that burns my nose!"

 After a couple minutes of coughing and gagging while rubbing at her nose, she finally mustered up the courage to pick up the clothing again. Hastily changing into the strongly smelling clothes, she eyed the cloak. She turned it over in her hands a few times trying to figure out why he gave her the cloak when she could easily put up the hood.

 "Welp... guess nobody's gonna notice the stink of human when I reek of mustard..." she muttered, slinging the cloak over her shoulders and pulling up the hood. The hood managed to cover her entire face while letting her see while the cloak itself draped around her.

 Trudging through the snow and towards Grillby's she paused to glance inside. Sans was sitting in the same stool he was in when they first met. Pushing open the door, she strolled casually over towards Red. Climbing up on the stool, she hunched over slightly. "try to talk in that wierd language, doll." he whispered to her.

 "Hi saag hi rund ven wah ofaal zey zek hofkiin? (You said you found a way to get me back home?)" she asked in Etguar (Eternal Guardian).

 "yeah. our mutual friend contacted me."

 "Rek drey? Fos drey rek saag? (She did? What did she say?)"

 "somethin' about divin' through the barrier. said you would know what it means."

 "Zu'u ofaal hunch. Nuz I'm ni ahk keen krilon nii. (I got a hunch. But I'm not too keen on risking it.)" Red gave her a look, Zerrus sighed in defeat. "Rek laan zey wah brah kruziik vensedren faan Overdive. Zu'u krenok dii sil nol dii kopraan lingrah ganog wah commandeer vorey. Ruzun Zehanpuryu ahrk Zu'u lost rinis suleyk, rek aal oblaan vok zek ko ek meyar kopraan het. (She wants me to use an ancient technique called an Overdive. I separate my soul from my body long enough to commandeer another. Since Zehanpuryu and I have the same powers, she may end up back in her own body here.)"

 "i've never heard of anythin' like that. and us monsters know the most about souls than anybody else."

 "Daar vensedren lost nahkiv ahstiid faal Kein. Faal Gleam Relahmik nahkiv daar vosmaar krif faal Gloam fod jul krif wah riil. Select vahmaan do faal Gleam fund piraak vomedaas joriin wah frey niin ko niist grah. Zehanpuryu lost rahzun do faal Gleam Relahmik ahrk lost grik vosmaar. (This technique was discovered during the War. The Gleam Council discovered this ability while fighting the Gloam while humanity was fighting against monsters. Select members of the Gleam would possess different people to aid them in their battle. Zehanpuryu was a soldier of the Gleam Council and had such an ability.)"

 "and what makes her think you can do that?"

 Just as Zerrus went to reply, Grillby stepped over to the two of them. His flames weren't the same type as before, they were a purple which usually meant the flames were much hotter. She heard a slight crackle from his flames and kept her head down to prevent him looking at her. He placed a bottle of mustard in front of Red and glanced over to Zerrus. 

 "Who is this, Sans?" he almost whispered between the two of them. Zerrus locked up slightly and turned to face Red. He seemed to have followed the same motion as her.

 "a friend." he managed to squeak out. Grillby stole a glance towards Zerrus, causing her blood to run cold and her pupil to shine a bit brighter than normal. Something about his gaze caused all her defenses to suddenly flare up. Any tension she had managed to push aside came back full force, pratically turning her into a human board.

 Clearing her throat, she finally managed to greet the similar bartender. "Ahnok. Faan los Zerrus. (Hey. I'm Zerrus.)

 "They seem awfully friendly, Sans." Grillby stated bluntly towards Red.

 "Rok understood zey? Vir? (He understood me? How?)"

 "Your soul spoke volumes. Why do you think nobody has reacted to me speaking?" Glancing down at the counter, Zerrus looked back up to Grillby with a confused look painted on her face. "They can't hear me. But you and Sans can."

 "Ruz... druv haven't hi unt naan? Waan dii sil qethserod edrah, ruz hi nalkun mindok. (Then... why haven't you tried anything? If my soul spoke volumes, then you already know.)"

 "Yes, I already know. You are a human. Most monsters are oblivious to a soul's voice. But your soul's voice is melodic, something we monsters don't have."

 "why haven't you attacked her yet, grillbz?" Red inquired, taking a swig of the mustard.

 "It may be kill or be killed here Sans, but I can sense that this human won't kill and won't be killed." He set down a shotglass in front of Zerrus, causing her to lean back slightly. "Due to that, I see no point in trying. I know when to back down from a challenge."

 "Zu'u hind vorey fund koraav ven hi dreh, Grillby. Zu'u lost sizaan tii do vir pogaan tiid aanwo lost unt wah ster dii reym. (I wish others would see the way you do, Grillby. I have lost count of how many times someone has tried to kick my ass.)" she muttered, staring at the shotglass like it was filled with poison. "Fun zey fos daar los? Drun Zu'u los ni ahk keen piin geikaal. (Mind telling me what this is? Cause I'm not too keen on drinking alcohol.)"

 "really? how old are ya anyways?" Red gawked, staring at Zerrus with shock. She gulped hard as it hit her; she never told her universe's Sans just how old she was. It was strange, but maybe it was because she doesn't look mature.

 "20." she blurted, staring at the glass some more. She picked it up and examined it more closely, her pupil shining a bit brighter as she scanned it.

 For a little over a year, Zerrus has been able to determine whether or not something was dangerous based on her eyes. They had a sort of glow around them depending on what the object was made of. The drink shone a dim green, signaling to her that whatever was in the glass wasn't harmful.

 "Fos los daar? Waan Zu'u bo wah piin daar, Zu'u fund pogaas milaar laan wah mindok fos los ko nii. (What is this? If I am going to drink this, I would much rather want to know what is in it.)"

 "grillbz put it together for ya. it'll let ya relax and preserve yer magic til we get to the barrier." Red explained.

 "Ful, niidro dampener do eylok? (So, it's a dampener of sorts?)" He nodded, gesturing towards the drink. "Druv hiif zey? (Why help me?)"

 "look doll, we ain't too happy about ya bein' here. but if yer willin' to risk everythin' to break the barrier fer us, i don't see why not. so far, yer the only good thing that's happened down here."

 Heaving a sigh, Zerrus glanced back over to Red and Grillby. "Baakrit vok. (Bottoms up.)" Gulping down the shot fast, her vision blurred and every hair on her head stood on its ends. Her left eye suddenly went dark, causing her to reflectively wave her hand on the left side of her peripheral vision. Then, it hit her.

 Her left eye was mostly magic.

 Hours of walking through the Underground with Red guiding her due to her blindness, they finally reached the capital. They were currently walking down a golden corridor, the stained glass shining an artificial sunlight. She gulped hard as the feeling of intense magic pulsated around her. Stealing a glance towards Red, she noticed his expression was dark. "Red? What's with the face?" she asked, squinting in an attempt to see more clearly.

 He jolted, staring at Zerrus with surprise and then relief. "don't mind that." he grumbled, continuing to guide her down the hallway. Zerrus stood her ground, refusing to move. "what now?"

 "I've seen this place before... in a memory that wasn't my own." She stepped closer to him, grabbing his hoodie sleeve and tugging slightly. "You were there. I was in the shoes of someone who took your brother away from you."

 At those words, he reeled around and nearly backhanded her in the face. Ducking under his arm, she stood firm and gripped his arm more firmly. His eyelights grew in size as he realised just how worked up his was about the situation. Clearing his throat and turning to look away from Zerrus, Red snarled. "what would you understand? you've never lost your sibling like i did."

 Growling and rearing her hand back, she brought her fist directly into Red's ribcage. He stumbled back clutching his chest then glared back at her, his left eye flaring with red magic. "Look dumbass, I DO know what it's like! But unlike you, I didn't have the luxury of resets! He will NEVER come back!"

 Red's eyes darkened, his magic dying down at her words. Zerrus brushed by him almost violently, purposefully bumping into his shoulder to knock him out of his trance. The markings that ghosted over her arms were glowing intensely, her pupil shining dimly. Blue and red flames burned around her left eye, the flames flickering past her head.

 "I don't really owe you anything, Red. I'm only breaking the barrier cause I have no choice. The fact you'll all be free is a simple bonus for you. But to me, now I see that it may be a mistake. But y'know what?" Zerrus turned around narrowing her eyes at the still stunned skeleton. "It's not my universe, so I don't give a damn."

 Red followed her closely, ensuring that Asgore would not attack her as she made her way to the barrier. There she stood, staring in awe at the magic resonating from the barrier. The barrier reflected the colors of the sunset through the chamber, causing her to stare. Breaking this magic would result in monsters going free and Zerrus going home.

 "Hey, Red..." she mumbled, turning her head to look at him over her shoulder. "Take good care of this universe, will ya?"

 Her soul lurched out of her body and hovered. The pulsations of the barrier and her soul were almost synchronized. Closing her eyes, Zerrus felt her soul separate from her body. Her physical body slumped to the floor in a heap, yet she still stood. She looked down to see her body was transparent, which meant the Overdive was working.

 Stepping towards the barrier, she reached her hand out. Her fingers brushed the surface of the barrier, a burst of light and the sound of shattering glass echoing through the chamber. The world around Zerrus began to fade, just as she turned around to see Asgore rush into the room wielding a trident.

 Shaking her head, she walked into the column of light that remained. She felt like she was falling endlessly through time and space, memories of something and voices rang out around her. Shutting her eyes tightly, she felt her body hit something solid. The point of contact appeared to be her stomach, the pain almost bruising.

 Slowly opening her eyes, she noted that there was nothing physical anywhere near her stomach. A menacing chuckle sounded in the empty space, causing her to turn around with a start. There before her stood a child with short brown hair, a green sweater with yellow stripes, and a pair of brown shorts. They looked up slightly at her, revealing to her a set of ruby red eyes.

 "Chara..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am sorry for lack of upload during the weekend. Our internet service is the equivalent of a cheese grater running on a potato battery.


	21. Chara

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After shattering the barrier, Zerrus's soul has found itself in the void once more. But what awaits her is not Gaster, nor Frisk.

  
 "Ooh it's such a pleasure to know that someone knows my name." Chara mocked, stepping towards Zerrus slightly. She held her ground and glared deeply at the child.

 "I know what you are..." she growled, magic dancing around her fingers slightly. The presence of her golden orbs faintly fluttered around them. "I've heard it all from Sans and Zehanpuryu. So tell me; why should I not kill you where you stand?"

 Chara cackled maniacally, Zerrus tensing up at the evil laughter and strengthening the orbs fluttering nearby. Their eyes seemingly melted into a mass of black goop, their smile growing more menacing by the second. "You can't stop me, idiot."

 "Wanna bet, brat?!" Zerrus challenged, throwing her hand back. The three golden orbs and three violet orbs swirled around her, cloaking her body in an aura of magic. The magic imploded towards her, encasing Zerrus in a miraculous blue crystal.

 The crystal shuddered violently then shattered, sending many shards of blue crystal towards Chara. They smiled widely, casually dodging all of the shards that had burst forward. Chara pulled out a knife from their sleeve, smiling even wider at her attempt at harming them.

 Zerrus hovered down to the ground, her body encased in her blue bodysuit. Lining her suit was thigh guards that radiated her soul magic, a girdle, a set of bracers pulsing with magic, and the gem centered on her chest glowing fiercely. Her boots were guarded by a metal plating, making each of her steps clank loudly on the ground. Her black gloves had metallic fingertips, ensuring that every action with her magic would be amplified.

 "What do you intend to gain by killing everything?" she demanded, taking a single step towards the demonic child.

 "Why else?" Chara chuckled evilly, stepping even closer to Zerrus with the knife held high over their head. "Power."

 Brining the knife down, Zerrus pounced back using a mini soul-burst. One of the smaller gems planted to her gloves shone brightly, magic pulsating strongly. Chara laughed even louder at her, causing her to scoff slightly at the cocky child. "Why? Why do you want power?!"

 "You really are an idiot, aren't you?" Zerrus felt a strong weight on her entire body, like the world was crashing down around her. Struggling to keep herself standing, Zerrus kept her eyes locked on to Chara. "Hm. You're stronger than I thought. I wonder what power I'll get from YOU."

 "Not a chance!"

 Magic ghosted around her hands, forming a solid object. The hilt of a sword materialized itself into the palm of her hands, the blade made of pure magic. Throwing both her arms back, the force pushing her down burst away. Raising the sword towards Chara, Zerrus glared deeply, her eye shining brighter than ever.

 "I know how sadistic freaks like you work, Chara. Something MADE you this way! And if you won't tell me willingly..." Raising her sword higher, magic gathering around the blade, Zerrus snarled. "I'll FORCE it out!"

 Bringing her blade down at lightning speed, a shockwave of magic pulsed out towards Chara. Their smile widening, they held up their knife in a blocking manner. The shockwave connected with their knife, the waves of magic pushing outwards like the waves of a rushing river. Zerrus's eyes widened in shock at their survival.

 "Surprised? Heh heh. Attacks like that are far too predictable. You're too slow!" Chara taunted, flipping their knife from hand to hand in a carefree manner. Grunting slightly, Zerrus shifted her stance to that of a defensive one. Laughing at her, Chara shot forward. Their knife barely missing her cheek, Zerrus felt time slow.

 Using that opportunity, she brought the hilt of her sword to Chara's side. A crunch sound echoed through the empty space, followed by a quiet gasp. Spinning around, Zerrus brought her blade down towards them. Time seemed to be creeping by around them, her motions sluggish and Chara's eyes looking up at her.

 Suddenly, a sharp pain stung in her gut.

 Looking down, Zerrus saw that Chara had driven their knife into her stomach. Bringing her gaze back up to their face, she groaned as they twisted the knife in her gut. Chara chuckled darkly, inching their face closer to Zerrus's. "Who said you were in one in control?"

 Bringing her leg up to kick at the child, she felt the cold metal of the knife leave her body. Holding her gut tightly to help stop the bleeding, she glared at Chara. "You were never in control either, Chara." she grunted. The gems of her gloves radiated a green shade, the magic tendrils stretching out towards her injury.

 Laughing even darker, Chara took another step towards Zerrus. Quickly bringing her sword back up, she stepped to the side. They brought the bloodied knife up to their face, slowly licking off her blood from the metal. Zerrus cringed audibly at the display, shuddering in disgust and tightening her grip on her sword.

 "Despite how disgusting that was, I can't let that deter me! Chara, who or what made you like this?" she demanded once again, bringing her blade down mere inches from their small body. "Do you really want to sit and stew in anger and hatred forever? Do you really want to cause pain and agony to those who DON'T deserve it?!"

 "Everybody deserves to die!" Chara snapped, lashing out at her. Zerrus quickly brought her sword up as a shield, blocking the impact of the knife. "I know everything this world has done... and I won't stop until everything but me is destroyed!"

 "Good god, you're worse than a freakin' video game antagonist!" Zerrus retorted, swinging her blade sideways and knocking the knife out of their hands. "Stop being such a pain in the ass and TALK TO ME! Why are you insistent on destroying everything?!"

 Chara growled, glancing between Zerrus and the knife. She quickly caught on to what they were thinking and brought her sword towards the knife. Glaring at them, she slowly inched towards the area where the knife landed. Chara suddenly bolted towards the knife, Zerrus's gem glowing brightly as she prepared to use a magic attack.

 Sending a burst of soul energy towards them, Zerrus managed to knock Chara down on to their stomach. Stepping over to them and planting a foot on their back, she held the blade up to their head. "Enough, Chara. Tell me why you want to kill everything. I know that something hurt you in the past, making you want to destroy everything. A feeling of 'If I couldn't be happy, no one should' running through that little head of yours."

 "You should know what it's like, idiot." Chara snarled. Zerrus cocked her head at the implication, raising her sword a little bit away from them. "Look at me. Then yourself."

 A sadistic smile etched onto their face, their eyes flashing slightly. "You're just like me."

 Shifting slightly, Zerrus's grip on her blade loosened. "No. There's a difference between us. I don't kill others for power. I will only kill to protect those I love." she mourned, lowering her blade slightly. "Let me guess... people assumed you were a monster simply because of your eyes. You were outcasted from society and treated like shit because of how they saw you."

 Chara's eyes shimmered slightly, their breath hitched.

 "I know that feeling. Not only are my eyes different, but so are my ears. I also possess magic. Something I never wanted or even understood how it happened. But you know what, Chara?" Zerrus dismissed her sword, bending down to clamp Chara's hands behind their back. "I know what it's like to be different. The real difference between us is that I found a way to get back at the people who judged me based on my looks without killing them. I found another who had the same situation, and we stuck together through everything."

 "I was never given a chance... so why should I give THEM a chance?" they spat, struggling to reach her hands pinning their arms.

 "Because despite how humanity is... we're all flawed. Humanity fears the unknown, and we are both unknown. Are you any better than them, killing innocent souls?" Zerrus slightly eased her grip, pulling Chara up to their knees to look them in the eyes. "Chara... they killed YOU long ago."

 "You will NEVER understand!"

 "I understand more than you know, Chara."

 "Zerrus!" called out a familiar voice. Turning towards it, she let her guard down. Chara lashed out towards her, grabbing the knife from under her and bringing it to her neck.

 "You are proving to be far more difficult than you SHOULD be." Chara growled, bringing the knife closer to Zerrus's neck, the cold metal causing her hair to stand on its ends. "You are even more challenging than that smiley trashbag."

 'Sans?' Zerrus pondered, the feeling of the knife pressing against her neck causing all her senses to go haywire. 'Th-this can't be happening! This just CAN'T be happening!'

 "Where is she, Sans?" echoed that same voice. She finally caught on to who it was; it was her husband, Dat. "Zehanpuryu said she should've come through by now!"

 "Folaas... something isn't right! Her magic readings are wavering!" called out Zehanpuryu through the thick blanket of the void.

 Looking down at her chest, the gem was pulsing waves of magic around them. Narrowing her eyes and concentrating on strengthening the pulsations, sending an S.O.S using her soul energy. Zerrus's soul pulsed between red and blue, the shockwaves slightly pushing Chara's knife away.

 "did you feel something?" called out Sans voice, her magic pulsations having reached them through the emptiness.

 "Funrah! (Message) It's her! She's calling out to us!" Zehanpuryu chirped, a magic pulse of white and gold reaching towards Zerrus.

 'Chara. Help.'

 "AGREH! Agreh iidah ek! (Chara is attacking her!)"

 Chara grunted, lowering their knife from Zerrus's neck. "See you soon. You AND that comedian." they cackled. She quickly hopped up to her feet, rushing over to the source of magic pulsations and diving towards the ripples of energy. The sound of rushing water filled her ears and her vision was all but lost. The wound on her gut burned fiercely and the tiny prick on her neck stung.

 Slamming violently into the floor, she found herself being shot out of the machine that was in Sans's workshop. Skidding to a painful stop, her face scraping off the linolium and bumping into the little cabinet attached to the wall. Pulling herself up to her feet, Zerrus groaned in protest as her body locked up.

 "Zerrus! Are you okay?!" Dat questioned, bending down to help Zerrus up to her feet.

 "Ithquant... how are your ahraan... your wounds?" Zehanpuryu asked, slowly approaching her.

 Zerrus's eyes widened at the sight of Zehanpuryu's new body. Her hair was a platinum shade and reached down to her ass. Her skin was a bright gray hue, teal magic patterns tracing each individual muscle. She wore a purple vest that only reached just past her breasts, a matching pair of shorts, and a unique pair of boots. Her right boot reached up her thigh while the left only reached to her ankle.

 "Worry about my injuries later, Zehanpuryu. We got more important things to be concerned about." Zerrus spoke, turning towards Sans with a sort of pleading look. "Chara. They said they'll see us soon."

 "we're running out of time." he muttered.


	22. The Plan

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After being shot out from the Void, Zerrus warns the others in the workshop of the danger headed their way.

  
 "This isn't really necessary, Sans." Zerrus grumbled as Sans inspected her wounds. "Chara didn't do that much."

 "We can't be too careful, Zerrus. Agreh made a very obvious rut... threat about coming here soon. Since you had the displeasure of meeting them up close... hi aal kos niist krazahd. (you may be their target)" Zehanpuryu supported, helping hold Zerrus steady to prevent her from leaving.

 "Why would I be their target?"

 Sans grabbed Zerrus's chin and forced her to look at him directly, his eyes dark and focused. He let go of her chin and continued to inspect the knife wound on her stomach.

"chara tends to have red eyes. when they possessed frisk, i could see those eyes. but here's the problem, kid..." Sans started.

 "Her eyes are already red..." continued Dat as he stepped in the room with another person. Zerrus eyed the man cautiously, unsure of his standpoint with him being there.

 "Geh! Exactly! If Agreh were to possess her, we wouldn't know until it was ahk spein, too late." Zehanpuryu nodded frantically, crossing her arms and staring at Zerrus even more. "I felt something while you were in the nil, the void. Did you anger Agreh?"

 "Anger is an understatement, Zehanpuryu." she mumbled, looking back over to the mysterious man standing next to Dat. "Who's this, Dat?"

 "A random dude who yells at me to shake my booty when fighting a robot. Y'know, nothing out of the ordinary here." Dat responded, giving the man an unusual look. "Zerrus. This is Krogiir or Kro. Kro, Zerrus."

 "Hey." he greeted, waving shyly at her.

 "First off, what IS ordinary to us anymore? Second, did you really shake your ass while fighting a robot?" Zerrus questioned, cocking her head slightly with a bit of a giggle in her voice.

 "no butts about it. he did." Sans punned, causing her to snort slightly. He straightened himself and waved his hand, the magic constricting her slightly fading. "you're good. chara roughed her up though."

 "What happened in there?" Zehanpuryu inquired, her eyes full of concern.

 "Not much to say really. Chara got pissy with me when I wouldn't go down easily. Shortly after they stabbed me, I knew what they were REALLY trying to accomplish. I think I know how we can stop them." Zerrus answered, lowering her head slightly in thought. "We just need to find someone who understands them the most."

 Everyone sat in silence for a few minutes, the sound of clothing barely shifting the only thing breaking the silence. Then, Dat finally broke the ice.

 "What about Flowey?" he asked. Zerrus's eyes shot open and scanned Dat. The look on his face showed only a tinge of guilt and some determination.

 "You read my journal. Glad you did, cause I wouldn't have thought of that. Maybe Flowey is the only one who understands them. After all, he did try to convince me to raise my LOVE." she mused loudly.

 Pacing around the room a bit, Zerrus bit her lip slightly and lost herself in thought.

 'There HAS to be some sort of compromise with Chara...' She bumped into something solid, causing her to nearly fall flat. Glancing up, she locked eyes with a very irritated skeleton. 'Don't let him try to read your thoughts... just apologize and keep pacing.'

 "zerrus. what're you planning?" Sans growled out, causing her to tense up. She shook her head and went back to pacing. "you're planning something reckless. i know you too well already."

 Stopping dead in her tracks, she turned to face him. Glaring at him fiercely, her eye catching magical fire. "Sans..." she snarled out, balling up her fist and cautiously approaching him. Dat took a sharp inhale, rushing towards Zerrus and grabbing her arm. "Back off, Dat."

 "He's saying what we're all thinking, Tech. We know that look WAY too well." Dat pointed out, tightening his grip on her arm. Glancing back to him, Zerrus caught sight of a similar magical fire burning in his right eye. "You always bite your lip when you're thinking of throwing yourself into danger. And not on accident either."

 "What choice do we have? If I don't confront them on my own, they'll just use me to hurt you! And I can't risk that!" Zerrus yelled, pushing everyone away from her with a soul burst. Dat remained clamped to her arm, his grip almost glued to her. "Let go of me."

 "Not happening. Zerrus, no matter what you plan, I'm going with you."

 "We can't risk it. Did you happen to forget what happened back in Blackspore?" Dat froze up at her words, the memories flooding back. "Did you forget that the child we were looking for was possessed by a grave elemental? And did you forget that when you tried to comfort them, they possessed YOU?"

 Dat remained silent.

 "The elemental had access to your powers and damn near tore me limb from limb! What makes you think Chara won't try the same thing?!"

 "Tech, do YOU remember how I came to?" Zerrus stilled, easing her stance and looked down at the floor. "Not only did you slap the shit outta me, your soul reminded me who I was, and who you were."

 Loosening his grip on her arm, he forced her to look at him.

 "Chara won't stand a chance."

 "Damn Dat, didn't figure you to be a sappy son of a bitch. But... you're right. If the grave elemental couldn't blind your soul, Chara won't be able to as well." Zerrus closed her eyes, taking in a deep shakey breath. "But my decision is set. We can't let anyone else in the corridor with us. Just me and Sans. Otherwise, it'll be too dangerous."

 "dat, she's right. chara told her they will be waiting for us. if we bring anyone else along... well, we'll have a bad time." Sans interjected, stepping up beside Zerrus and planting a hand on her shoulder. "if chara wants to see us, then we'll give them what they want. set'em up."

 "Zehanpuryu." She perked up at the announcement of her name, her attention rapt. "Keep a lock on my soul. Should push come to shove, take control. I'm giving you permission to control me if things are out of control. Don't abuse it."

 "Of course, Ithquant." she responded with a bow.

 "Kro." Krogiir looked up at her, his look that of boredom. "If we fail to subdue them, evacuate the premises. Get everyone to safety."

 "Gotcha." he acknowledged, snapping off a crisp salute and turning towards the door.

 "Dat, this is where you come in. Go with Kro. Trust Zehanpuryu's instincts. If her 'body' starts to flicker, begin evacuation procedures. You'll be able to cover more ground with him."

 "Okay." Dat replied, stepping over to Kro.

 "Sans. You're the only one most familiarized with the timelines and who is where. Where will we find Flowey?"

 "hard to say. he pops up everywhere." Sans shrugged. Zerrus sighed, face palming at the obvious challenge to preparing the fight with Chara. "if i'm to guess? he might be in the throne room."

 "Alright. Everyone got their orders?" Everyone nodded. "Good. Get into position. Wait for Zehanpuryu's signal to engage. We only got one shot at this guys. We better make it count." Just at that, everyone rushed out to their positions, leaving Sans and Zerrus the only ones left in the workshop.

 "sure this is gonna work?" he broke the silence hanging around them.

 "It's the only thing we can do. As I said, we can't risk Chara possessing me to attack everyone. Zehanpuryu has a soul link with me. If it happens, she'll know." She mumbled, turning towards the direction of the capital. "What about Asgore? If we're going to find Flowey, we gotta go into the throne room. If he sees me..."

 "you still got dat's magic, remember? use it."

 Closing her eyes, she felt the familiar tingle of magic course around her body. The energy trailed to her head and her lower back, slowly conjuring her soul animal parts. A sort of fwip! echoed, her blue tail and ears materialized. Checking thoroughly, she discovered that they were indeed fully summoned. Zerrus looked up at Sans, a familiar grin on his face as he offered his hand.

 "Shortcut?"

 "shortcut."

 The world faded back into view as they landed in a beautiful garden of buttercups, the king tending to his garden almost solemnly. "Just a moment, Sans. I'm almost done watering my flowers." he spoke in a deep yet calming voice. He turned, white fur almost shining amongst the light. "Howdy, Sans."

 His caring eyes fell on Zerrus, her ears twitching ever so slightly as she listened in for any signs of Flowey. She could hear a very slight rustling sound coming from within the garden. The type of rustling usually associated with movement not connected to any type of wind, but something moving willfully. Her tail swished slightly, her ears now focused on Asgore.

 "Would you two like some golden flower tea?" Zerrus stole a glance towards Sans, looking for any signs of him finding a way to distract him.

 "as tempting as that sounds, we can't. my friend and i heard word that there might be something in here that could hurt you. we would like you to head into the safety of your house while we investigate." he spoke. Zerrus knew that this was his plan to get Asgore to leave the room. But the way he said it sounded like he wasn't referring to Flowey, but to Chara.

 "You have never steered me wrong before, Sans. Why do you think you are my last line of defense? I trust you entirely." Her eyes widened at this information, her tail almost rigid and her ears upright. "Take care, you two."

 Zerrus glanced back towards the entrance of the throne room, all signs of Asgore now gone. She now brought her attention back to Sans. "Last line of defense? Jesus, Sans. Just how powerful ARE you?"

 "enough to be a real thorn in your side." he punned. They heard a sort of grumbling sound coming from the garden, a rather pissed off looking flower popping out of the ground.

 "Your puns are TERRIBLE! Do you ever SHUT UP?!" Flowey yelled, his petals shaking slightly. Zerrus approached him, kneeling down and showing that she still means no harm.

"What do YOU want?"

 "Look Flowey, I'm not going to beat around the bush here. We need your help." Zerrus incidentally joked, not even realizing it until Flowey hissed and nipped at her hand. "Shit, didn't mean to pun. Anyways, I know about Chara."

 Flowey stilled, his eyes widening in either fear or surprise in general. "What about them?"

 "Chara plans on meeting me and Sans in the Judgement Hall. But here's the kicker that even he doesn't know; I'm planning on letting Chara know that a human cares."

 "what?" "What?" they both blurted out. Zerrus folded her ears down, her tail curling a bit towards her leg.

 "I know they're hurting. They kinda dropped some very obvious hints. Something about their past on the surface hurt them. I was hoping that maybe YOU of all people will be able to help get through to them. After all... you're their friend, aren't you?"

 "They won't want to see me. I messed up." Flowey's face changed to that of a rather adorable looking one compared to the fake one. "But what's it matter to YOU? It's YOUR kind that trapped us here!"

 "I know that! And I'm trying to make it right. But in order to do that, I need help. We won't be able to get far with Chara constantly intervening." Zerrus brought her hand closer to Flowey, as a sort of peace offering. "I also know how to bring YOU back."

 Flowey started chuckling.

 "Earth to idiot. I'm still here." he barked out, biting her finger. She hissed slightly, but ignored it other than that.

 "No. Not the real you... Asriel." she whispered, still holding her arm out towards him. "You know my LOVE. You know my stats. And you know I'm not lying. Will you help me talk to your old friend? To put an end to all of this pain and suffering? (Speaking of which my finger really fucking hurts with you digging your flower fangs into me!)"

 She heard Sans take a few steps towards them, Zerrus's ears turning towards his movements. She heard him stop his advance and sigh. "What about HIM?" She turned to look at Sans, his eyelights were missing and his grin was twitching ever so slightly. "How do I know he won't RIP ME APART?!"

 "look bud, you don't like me. i don't like you. but we need to work together to stop chara. we can't do it alone." Sans half snarled, half whispered. Zerrus sighed partially in irritation and brought her attention back to Flowey.

 "If he tries, he knows I'll kick his boney ass to hell and back." She huffed, her eye combusting into magic flames and she shot her famous 'death glare' towards Sans. She brought that same glare back over to Flowey. "And if YOU try to double cross us, I'll personally ensure that each of your petals are ground up and served in a cup of golden flower tea..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am terribly sorry for not posting on time these past couple of weeks. I recently came down with a flu and finally kicked it back.


	23. The Sacrifice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With the plan now formed, Zerrus, Sans, and Flowey wait for a certain child to arrive.

  
 Flowey curled his vines tightly around Zerrus's arm, his petals shaking slightly. She glanced over to him to see an unusual drop of sweat trickle down his face. "You're scared... Why?" she whispered to him so as not to let Sans hear.

 He turned his head towards her, his eyes darting left and right as they studied her. "You don't know what you're dealing with. They can reset. They'll eventually wear you down and kill you! Just ask that smiley trashbag." Flowey snarled, gesturing his head towards Sans.

 Zerrus turned and look at Sans, his normal slouch replaced by an unusual amount of rigidity. "There's that word again... Reset." She stepped up to Sans, placing her free hand on his shoulder lightly. "Sans. I need to know; what is reset?" If he was stiff before, he was as rigid as bone should be.

 "it's the reason we're here now." he bluntly answered, turning his attention back to the other end of the hall. "get ready. they're here."

 Bringing her gaze back down the hallway, she noted a very familiar looking sweater trudging down the hallway. A blue sweater, not green. Her breath catching in her throat, Zerrus glanced down at Flowey. His vines tightened around her left arm, his petals quivering as they approached. "Don't mistake them, lightball. That's not who you think they are." he warned.

 The child stopped in their tracks, waiting for something. Zerrus glanced back over to Sans, waiting for a signal to emerge from their hiding spots. Nodding, they both stepped out from their places behind the pillars. The child's face remained emotionless. "So... you made it here." Zerrus called out.

 Sans's eyes almost blew open, a look of shock drawn on his face. 

 "Let me ask you something, do you think everyone deserves a chance? That even the worst person can be changed for the better just by a simple act?"

 "What are you DOING, idiot?!" Flowey snapped, tugging on her hair sharply. "They won't LISTEN!"

 "Chara... you were never treated like a human being. You may be made of LOVE... but you were never shown love." Zerrus held her arms outwards as a symbol of peace, the gem on her chest shining a calm light. Sans shifted slightly closer to her, his eyelights flickering off. "Will you give it a chance, Chara? Will you put aside your hatred for the world and accept it for what it is now?"

 Chara began chuckling quietly, their smile growing menacingly. They gripped the handle of their knife tightly, eyes flashing red. "Are you really trying to use that pathetic speech against me?" Chara laughed, stepping closer to the trio while the room darkened around them. "What a laugh! The comedian tried the same thing many times before!"

 They kicked off their feet, lunging at Zerrus in an attempt to stab her. She casually leaned backwards, time slowing around them once again. Chara's red eyes met Zerrus's, then flickered over to the flower wrapped around her arm. A bone shot by them, clipping off a few strands of hair and barely knicking their ear.

 Twirling back, she kept Flowey faced away from Chara. "Three against one hardly seems fair..." they murmured, their shoulders shaking slightly. They suddenly burst into a maniacal laughter, Zerrus flinching back slightly and covering Flowey with her free arm. "Just means more EXP for me!"

 Their eyes dancing between Zerrus, Flowey, and Sans, Chara held their knife closer to their face.

 "Who should I go for FIRST?"

 "Well that plan backfired... Initiate BLACK WIND!" Zerrus shouted, a magic aura ghosting around her entire body. The normal blue hue of her magic shifted to a much darker shade, almost a midnight blue. The magic burn on her cheek radiated a black mist, the fog trailing down her cheek and to her arm.

 Holding her hand out, a rifle materialized in her hand, her magic polishing the weapon. A single golden orb hovered out behind her, the same target-shape from her eye embedded in the center. A howl echoed through the corridor, her wolf companion dashing out from behind her and standing by her side.

 Opening her eyes, her left eye caught magic fire, the flames bursting forth. Her eye was solid black with the target reticle shining brighter than ever. A second burn mark scorched onto her other cheek, flames trickling over towards Flowey. Stealing a quick glance over to him, she nodded.

 The flames surrounded the golden flower, pulling him free from his perch. A burst of magic fire exploded out, dropping down a white furred goat monster with black markings decorating his body. In his hands were two sabers, both shining brightly with monster soul magic.

 Looking over to Sans, he was standing on one of his blasters. His eye was blazing brighter than Zerrus had ever witnessed, a feral look in his eye. Nodding to him, he grunted with affirmation. Extending his hand, the blaster he was standing on glowered at Chara.

 "We gave you a chance, Chara. Too bad it's gotta end like this." Zerrus's voice wavered, her magic coating her voice like armor itself. "Then again... you had this comin'."

 "it's a beautiful day outside..." Sans began, his blaster opening its maw.

 "Birds are singing..." Zerrus continued, shouldering her rifle while magic gathered around the barrel.

 "Flowers are blooming..." Asriel added, raising his sabers.

 "On days like these..." Her orb shuddered and blipped a few times, the reticle focusing on Chara's location. Her wolf crouched, ready to pounce.

 "kids like you..." Sans nearly growled, the blaster's magic white hot and ready to explode.

 "SHOULD BE BURNING IN HELL!" They all shouted in unison, each of their attacks colliding and creating a shockwave of violent magic. Zerrus's wolf companion rushed in front of the trio, accompanied by another of Sans's blasters. Huddling in front of them, the shockwave jarred the two familiars.

 Once the smoke cleared, Zerrus focused her Optical Orb to search for any signs of Chara. She was immediately met with a knife just barely cutting her left eye. Leaning back, the knife drug across her face, leaving a nasty cut. Staggering back, she quickly used the butt of her rifle to shove Chara away. The blood from her new wound trickling down her nose.

 "How the fuck did you survive that?!" Zerrus shouted as she focused some of her magic to charging another blast. Chara cackled evilly, slowly approaching her while licking her blood off of the knife once again. Shivering at the display, she took a step back from the sadistic child.

 "I told you before; you aren't the one in control!" they laughed, rushing towards Sans with their knife. Blinking out of the attack, Sans landed behind Zerrus. Asriel took that chance and slashed at Chara with his chaos sabers. "Hmph! Asriel, you have a lot of nerve trying to fight me!"

 "Chara, stop this!" Asriel yelled, a colorful array of magic circling around his hands.

 "Why should I?! You know why I fell down here to begin with! You should have gone with the plan!" Chara kicked back, dashing towards Asriel at breakneck speed. Rushing in front of Asriel, Zerrus used a small soul burst as a shield to deflect their attack. "You should be attacking THEM, you idiot! You're just a pawn like everyone else!"

 "That includes you, Chara! You're not the game master in this! So just GIVE UP!" Zerrus snapped, waving her hand forward as a blast of blue energy shot by her and knocked them back. Sans teleported forward, grabbing Chara's soul with his blue magic and sending them flying into a nearby wall.

 Knocking the wind out of them, Chara slumped to the ground. Holding up her hand, Zerrus cautiously approached them. A coating of green magic covered her hand, awaiting her next command. Bending down to get a closer look at Chara, she felt time slow again. Her soul almost dropped to her stomach as she caught the glint of metal rushing towards her.

 Grabbing the knife without thinking, she felt the blade cut into the palm of her hand. Wincing loudly, she glared at the child, hatred flaring in her eyes in equivalence to Chara's drunken haze for power. Suddenly, she felt like someone dumped a bucket of freezing cold water on her. Being thrown back towards the opposite end of the Judgement Hall, she watched as long platinum hair waved in the breeze.

 Looking down, she saw that she was still in her body. Zehanpuryu had just used her soul's location to teleport to her rescue. Her relief was short lived as she noticed her legs trembling. She was officially bait for Chara without the use of her legs. The blasters and her wolf stood in front of her, acting as a shield to keep them away.

 "Ha. I was wondering when you'd show up. How long has it been since I gutted you, mother." Chara said with spite. Everyone's eyes widened in shock at this new discovery, the information they had gathered about them being small compared to this. Zehanpuryu sighed, her claymore lowering to the ground.

 "It's been over twenty decades, Agreh. I understand that you hate me, but you shouldn't hate humanity for my mistakes." Zehanpuryu cried, glancing back to the others. "I only wanted what was best for you."

 "Do you seriously think I will EVER be the same thanks to you? I hate your guts! I hate this world! And I won't stop until EVERYTHING you care about is broken! JUST LIKE ME!" Chara yelled, the room turning from the shadowed darkness to a terrifying red.

 Pouncing backwards, Zehanpuryu twirled around shockwaves from Chara's knife. Bringing her claymore up, pulsations from her markings rippled out to her blade. Rushing over towards Chara, their blades clashed and sent waves of soul energy crashing over them.

 Sans and Asriel both readied attacks when they felt their souls also grow heavy, sending them both flying back towards the wall. Finally managing to stand up, Zerrus staggered towards Zehanpuryu and Chara. Magic pulsations grew heavier and heavier, almost threatening to crush her entire being the closer she got. On shakey legs, she managed to take only a few steps when a blinding light shone.

 Stopping in her tracks and shielding her eyes, she caught a glimpse of Zehanpuryu's soul hovering before them. Looking back over to Zerrus and the others, a single tear fell down her cheek. A weak smile drew across her lips. "Zerrus... you were right..."

 The light intensified, her soul pulsing between white and gold.

 "I made so many mistakes... but now I know how I can make everything right. Thanks to you, I got to witness the power of the Unahzaal Vahlok and the power of a pure heart. You are the Bii Kun. Take that kun and guide everyone to a happy future."

 "Zehan!" Zerrus cried out, reaching towards her when an explosion of soul magic shot her back towards the others. Everything began to fade, just as Zehanpuryu's last words echoed to her.

 "Nox Hi...(Thank You)"

 Her eyes snapping open, Zerrus shot up from her position. Rubbing at her temples she didn't even notice a familiar pitter-patter of feet running around. Looking over her body, she noted that the majority of her injuries were healed.

 "hey." Sans muttered, bringing her attention over to him. "glad to see you're up."

 "I can't believe you d-did it! You f-freed us all!" Alphys cheered, hovering near Zerrus while removing a few tubes from her.

 "Told ya she wasn't a weenie! She had a fire in her heart to save us and she DID IT!" Undyne laughed, jostling her shoulder a bit.

 "E-easy, Undyne! She's still w-weak from the fight!" Undyne quickly apologized, stepping back and scratching the back of her head.

 "How long was I out?" Zerrus asked, relaxing a bit into the pillow behind her.

 "A few hours." answered a familiar gruff voice. Turning towards the source, she spotted Gaster and Frisk. Both had smiles drawn on their faces. "How do you feel, Zerrus?"

 "Like I just went toe-to-toe with a train... I'll tell ya one thing, I am NOT getting into another situation like THAT again anytime soon!" Zerrus grumbled, rubbing her eyes and finding the scar over her left eye. "Glad to see you guys back in the real world."

 *It's good to be back, Techno Lady!* Frisk signed with a smile. The mechanical whirring of one of the lab doors opening drew her attention over towards the door.

 "Hey, Techy. How ya holdin' up?" Dat asked, stepping into the room with Papyrus and Krogiir following behind him. She bobbed her head from side to side with a shrug. "Hey, better than not good at all, right?"

 "I'm glad I trusted you." Asriel remarked, stepping out from behind Gaster and shyly waving.

 "Glad you were able to help, Asriel. Hey Papyrus, I'm kinda hungry. How about some of your famous spaghetti?" Zerrus smiled, patting her stomach as emphasis.

 "I WOULD BE HONORED!" Papyrus exclaimed, rushing into the nearby kitchen.

 "So, Tech... what the hell happened out there? Things just got real crazy. Zehan just said to get over to the lab and wait. Just before she stormed off, she tossed me this journal. I can't read it for shit." Krogiir said as he handed Zerrus the journal.

 She flipped open the journal to the last page, her eyes widening almost immediately.

Zerrus,

I'm sorry I caused so much trouble for you and Dat. You were right. I should have left well enough alone. But the time I spent in your world, trying to find a way to fix things, gave me the peace I needed.

For two-hundred years I waited for a chance. The chance to redeem myself for my actions in the past. No doubt you have questions you need answered. But if you are reading this, I can not answer in person.

Chara wasn't always a demon. They were, in fact, my child. Due to my duties as a Gleam Soldier, I was tasked with using the Overdive to command humans in their battle. One human I dove into was with child, and I did not know. I only discovered shortly after returning to my own body.

Nearing the end of my term, the Gloam heard of my pregnancy. They sent their best warriors to try to take my child. I doubt I need to tell you that they failed in their mission.

One of the warriors managed to strike me with an unusual spell. I did not think it would affect my child. Clearly, I was wrong.

The spell they used twisted their soul, leaving them a maniacal killing machine even as an infant. In fear, I locked them away when they were only 4. I regret that decision, as all it did was cause pain and suffering to those around me. However, being a conditioned soldier for the Gleam, I had to abandon my attachment to my own child. I was produced only to serve the Gleam and prevent the destruction of the planet.

The rest you know.

Thank you for everything you sacrificed. For putting up with my mistakes even when you should not have.

Zehanpuryu

 Looking up from the journal, a single tear shed from her eyes. "We'll never forget you, Zehanpuryu..." she whimpered. Just as the tear connected with the floor, a burst of blue light consumed everyone.

 The world reset.


	24. Return

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zehanpuryu had just sacrificed herself to save not only Zerrus, but the entire world as she tore Chara out of existence. Now Zerrus must come to terms with that sacrifice and cope with it.

  
 Blinking away the blinding light, Zerrus was met with Sans rubbing at his eyesockets. Looking down at her body, she noted that she was wearing her blue tank top and her black sweatpants. Bringing her gaze back up to Sans, they both sputtered in confusion. "W-what the hell?" she blabbered, her eyes darting back and forth around the back yard.

 Lying in the grass, Zerrus spotted Krogiir sleeping peacefully on his back. Stepping over to him, she bent down and nudged his shoulder. His eyes snapping open, Krogiir looked at Zerrus, his eyes half-lidded. He swung one leg over the other and shut one eye. "Oh... sup, Tech?" he yawned.

 "Sup? SUP?! The world reset AGAIN and all you can say is 'Sup'?!"

 The back door slid open, Dat rushing out almost immediately and running to Zerrus and Sans. "Tech, what the hell just happened?! We were in Alphys's lab and now we're here?!" Dat began asking questions frantically. His eyesight fell on Krogiir reclining in the grass, the look on his face like he didn't have a care in the world. "Kro? How... how'd you get here?"

 "Just a little something Zehan taught me before she teleported to you guys. Said that I should use it once you recovered." Krogiir replied, sitting up from the grass and patting off a few blades that stuck to his clothes. "She used a full-power soul burst to completely erase Chara from their loop. But because she didn't recover entirely..."

 "she sacrificed herself." Sans blurted out, everyone's attention drawn to the dark-eyed skeleton.  His eyelights returned to his sockets, his attention drawn back over to Krogiir. "you brought the world back to where it was before the spark."

 "Yup."

 "But how come we still remember everything? If the world was reset to before it was reset by Zehanpuryu, how come nothing changed?" Zerrus asked, crossing her arms and staring at him with a heated glare. "Who reset THIS time?!"

 "You did."

 "Wat." Zerrus and Dat both blurted, their expression blank yet confused.

 "You were the only one with 'determination'... whatever the hell that meant... strong enough to overpower Chara's. When everything was finally over, YOU reset the world to your last 'save'."

 "but she didn't die or do it on purpose. so what caused it?" Sans questioned, his eyes going dark once again.

 "What the hell is he talking about, Sans?" Zerrus redirected her questioning to Sans, hoping he could explain more clearly. "I keep hearing the words 'determination' and 'reset'. Now I want a full explanation."

 Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath and gestured for everyone to come inside the house. Shutting the door behind her, Zerrus watched as Sans planted himself on the couch. Sitting down on the recliner, she focused on Sans and his every move. Dat and Krogiir planted themselves on the other recliner and the couch. Grabbing her notepad and pen, she gestured for him to start.

 "determination is one of the traits that define a soul. you knew that already. in my opinion, determination is the most terrifying trait any human can possess. you saw it yourself with chara." Sans began.

 "Asriel mentioned before that Chara could reset. You also said that Frisk could do the same thing. Is it because they both have determination as their trait?" Zerrus asked, jotting down small notes about DETERMINATION.

 "yeah. when zehan reset the timeline to before frisk would fall into the underground, she made sure to send frisk's soul somewhere safe. she knew that frisk would be safe with my dad. with gaster."

 "So... her plan was to keep Chara at bay so we could stop them?"

 "simply putting it, yeah. frisk would reset the timeline when they died, or when they got bored. sometimes chara would take over. force them to kill everyone. including..."

 Zerrus held up her hand in a stopping motion. "You don't need to say any more. I heard it all from Gaster. He even showed me time fragments of those timelines."

 "every time they died, the timeline was brought back a bit. and every time they died, they were more aware of how to avoid attacks. it was ultimately our downfall. but here's the best part; if someone has more determination than another, they have complete control over the power of reset."

 "What are you saying?" She continued jotting down new information about DETERMINATION, her gaze flickering between the notepad and his eyes.

 "when you fell here, you overpowered their determination. in other words..." Sans's eyelights darkened, focusing directly on Zerrus's. "you have the power to reset."

 "What if I don't want it?"

 "it doesn't work like that, buddy. your soul was bound with the timeline the minute you fell into the underground. in simpler terms, you're stuck with a dangerous ability."

 "Hey, don't go judging her already, Sans. She's not stupid enough to reset after everything we went through." Krogiir spoke, resting his cheek on his hand. "She might be dumb enough to try to reason with a crazy kid, but she's not dumb enough to mess with someone who could snap her in half with magic."

 "Oh thanks, Kro. Just say that like I'm not here." Zerrus grumbled, her knee bouncing in anticipation and tapping the pen against the notepad. "What can you tell me about this 'saving' shit? How does it happen?"

 "the kid said they would see little glimmers. that when they touched them, it felt like they were being washed in a warm light. i'm not sure if it's the same with you or if it's different. all i know is that if you choose to use it..." Sans began, his eyelights vanishing and his left eye being replaced with his vibrant cyan eye. "it better be for a good reason."

 "Hey, I ain't gonna poke the bear here! I may be a dunce sometimes, but I'm not gonna do something to piss off one of my friends intentionally. If I end up pissing off a friend, it's PURELY by accident. And let's not forget that sub-atomic blast our magic generated! If your magic was powerful enough to create a discharge, I ain't gonna go toe-to-toe with it!"

 "okay. any more questions?"

 "One still left unanswered; how did we end up back here?"

 "That's where I come in." Krogiir responded, leaning up from the recliner and towards Zerrus. "Zehan taught me how to bring everything back to the way it was before she came along. I simply poked your magic to wake it up. When I did, POOF, we're back in our own timeline. No Chara. No problems."

 "Hmm no. That's where you're wrong, Kro." Dat pointed out, leaning forward and reaching under the couch. "We might not have to worry about Chara anymore, but now we gotta worry about HAM."

 "Ah dammit! I forgot about them. Hang on!" Zerrus shot up out of her seat and rushed upstairs. Thumbing through the clutter in the office, she eventually found her field journal that she labeled 'H.A.M.' Walking back into the living room, she saw that Dat had his own field journal. "Thanks to Papyrus and Dat, we had a scheduled meetup with some of the members of the anti-monster group. They are known as Humanity Against Monsters, or HAM for short."

 Passing the journal to Krogiir, she shifted her stance.

 "Just a heads up... Sans may crack off a few ham based puns thanks to the codename. Same with Dat."

 "huh. guess going back in the timeline and then forward again must've messed with my memory. almost forgot about that." Sans mumbled.

 "Says here that there's a banquet taking place in 2 days. That some of the figureheads of the rebels will be there." Krogiir read aloud, flipping through Zerrus's field notes. "I'm guessing you guys are going?"

 "Sorta." Zerrus answered, gesturing for everyone to follow her. Opening the door to her office, she pointed towards the couch in the corner of the room. "Go ahead and have a seat. May as well fill you in on the plan."

 Parking themselves down on the couch, Zerrus stepped over to the whiteboard with her field notes in hand. "So... what's the plan?"

 "We discussed this roughly a week ago, before the whole reset shit occured, on what we'll do. We eventually came to the agreement that since they have expressed a great amount of interest in me, we'll be sending two teams." Slapping up her profile image under a circled section, she held up 3 more profiles. "This is a public gathering, so monsters and humans are both going to be there. We know for a fact that there will be members of HAM at this meeting. So we will need one monster to accompany me."

 "Undyne or Sans." Dat named off the 2 profiles she held up.

 "Yes. I will need someone capable of defending themselves but also able to keep their composure." She brought each picture into each of her hands. "After experiencing Sans kicking my ass first hand, I know he'll be a liability. However, I've also sparred with Undyne and experienced how well she can handle herself."

 "she doesn't have the best temper, zerrus." Sans pointed out, leaning back into the couch some more. "don't tell me you already forgot what happened in waterfall."

 Dat snickered loudly, covering his mouth and biting his hand slightly to stop himself from belting out. Zerrus glared at him and brought her attention back to the whiteboard. "True. So that will leave me with Sans as my partner. This will leave Dat with Undyne as the second team." She slapped Sans's profile next to hers, then pasted Dat and Undyne's profile in another circled section. Grabbing a marker, she labeled each team as Alpha and Bravo. "Before we continue, we'll need the rest of the team. Dat, Sans, I need you to get ahold of Undyne and Papyrus."

 After Dat and Sans left the room to make their calls, Zerrus turned to face Krogiir. "What?" he asked, his posture still relaxed.

 "Look Kro, I'm going to need your help. You're clearly no ordinary human. The fact you were able to fool monsters in the Underground proves that. We need that deception to help us in this mission." Zerrus spoke, stepping over to the desk and grabbing a small device on one of the drawers. Tinkering with it, she leaned against the wall. "I was attacked twice by members of their organization. The first attack actually woke a regeneration ability within me. The second attack introduced me to Toriel and Frisk."

 "Excuse me?"

 "I'll explain later when they get here."

 After waiting for roughly an hour, a knock was heard at their front door. Standing up and strolling over to the door, Zerrus was met with a very exstatic Papyrus immediately scooping her up into a tight hug. Wiggling to break free, she saw Undyne step out from behind him with a big shit-eating grin plastered to her face. "Sup, punk?"

 "I'll explain more insi- PAPYRUS! Ease up, please!" Zerrus squeaked out, wiggling more to get out of the hug. Undyne cackled almost evilly, stepping up to her and giving her a noogie. "KYEEH!"

 A snort sounded further in the house, causing everyone to turn and look at the source. Leaning against the banister was Sans, his face blue and his hand covering his mouth. His shoulders were shaking slightly. "that was too fuckin' cute..." he whispered to himself. Zerrus just barely managed to catch his whispers thanks to her ear defenders, her face flushing red almost immediately at the compliment.

 Shrinking a bit away, she covered her face with most of her hair. Papyrus set her down, only to have her shrink even further away. "What's up with her?" Undyne asked Dat, shrugging slightly.

 "She gets flustered when anyone compliments her. She must've heard someone say something." Dat explained, stepping up to Zerrus only causing her to shrink up more. "Yup. She's flustered."

 "THAT IS ADORABLE, ZERRUS! BUT YOU DON'T NEED TO BE EMBARRASED!" Papyrus attempted to coax her out of her little shell.

 Scuttling up to her feet, she bolted right by Papyrus and Undyne. Skidding to a halt, she quickly dove into the office. Peaking her head around the corner, she noted that Sans now had his face covered entirely and his shoulders were shaking violently. "I can still hear you, boneboy..." she growled out.

 Sans turned to glance back at her, his usual grin was twitching ever so slightly. "i can't take you seriously right now, kid." he managed to giggle out, burying his face into his sleeve.

 After several minutes of awkward stares and heated glares, Zerrus started the mission debriefing. "Let's all agree to refrain from bringing this blushing disaster up anytime soon. Now... Team Alpha will consist of Sans and myself. Our objective is to try to get the figureheads of HAM to notice us and try to separate us from the crowd. Knowing their tactics, they WILL. HAM's leader has shown an unusual amount of interest in me and will do whatever it takes to get to me. In simpler terms, Sans and I will be a beacon."

 Zerrus pinned up their profiles under Alpha.

 "Team Bravo will be Dat and Undyne. Both of you show enough restraint to keep things under control. Should shit hit the fan, we'll need you two to come in and cover us as we retreat. This is only in case things go badly. Should things proceed without a hitch, remain as calm as possible. Do NOT engage."

 "what about the third team? what are they for?" Sans questioned, glancing over to Krogiir and Papyrus.

 "Team Charlie is our first aid team. Krogiir has shown quite a bit of knowledge when it comes to healing magic. And I know for a fact that Papyrus has better healing magic than anybody else we can spare. So, should we be injured, they will be there to help us out."

 "Great. I love doing nothing at all. I'll let the lady do all the work." Krogiir yawned, stretching out on the couch. Zerrus grunted in anger at his casual demeanor, then turned her attention to Undyne and Dat.

 "I'll have teams Alpha and Bravo outfitted with comm-links so we can keep tabs on what's going on in there. Since Bravo is our muscle team, you two will be equipped with high end occular devices." Zerrus snapped her fingers, two orbs hovered above her with target reticles dimmed. "These are your occular devices. I codenamed them Optical Orbs. They will remain undetected so long as you don't focus concentrated magic. Opi, Visi, go to your temporary masters."

 The two orbs bobbed slightly, then hovered over to Dat and Undyne. They each circled around them until settling on who they were going to follow. The blue one named Opi shrunk down to the size of a marble and plopped into Undyne's hand, while the red one fell into Dat's. Zerrus then turned her attention over to Sans.

 "Sans, I hope you have something formal to wear." She strode over to a wardrobe and opened it, revealing many different suits and dresses placed inside. "After all... we're going to be in royal company."


	25. Elegant Despair

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finally getting back on track with their timeline, Zerrus gathers the gang and debriefed them on their task of investigating the movements of H.A.M.

  
 Today was the day, the day of the royal banquet at the Sanctuary Embassy. Zerrus was standing in front of the wardrobe, thumbing through each individual outfit in search of the appropriate outfit for the heist. The sound of the air tearing behind her made her sigh. "Ever heard of knocking?" she grumbled out.

 "knock knock." spoke a familiar baritone voice.

 "Ha. Ha. Smartass..." Zerrus turned to face Sans, only to see he was still wearing his normal wear. "Didn't have a suit?"

 "nope."

 "Great... you can borrow one of these." She pushed him slightly towards the wardrobe after snagging a clothing bag marked 'RG'. "You can change in the guest bathroom over there. I'll be in the master bathroom. Come knock if you need anything."

 Stepping into the bathroom, Zerrus unzipped the bag and saw a familiar shade of blue. Pulling out the clothing, she felt a strong sense of nostalgia course through her. Upon closer inspection, it was the attire of the most renowned protectors of the royal family. The Royal Guard. She let out a deep sigh, pulling out the entirety of the garb. 

 Giving it a lookover, she noted that the tabard was in perfect condition. In the center of the tabard was a symbol of a green tree, surrounded by a gold embroidering. The cuffs of the tabard were a faded red, contrasting excellently with the royal blue of the undershirt. The collar of the tabard was the same faded red.

 Stripping off her regular clothes, she slipped on the breeches and clipped the buttons on the side. Zerrus relaced the lower leggings to where they were snug, then reached for the tabard. A knock was heard at her bathroom door. Freezing almost immediately, she stared at the door like a deer in the headlights.

 "hey zerrus, i need you to-." Sans stopped mid-sentence as he opened the door, only to see Zerrus frozen and hiding behind the shower curtain, staring at him. His face flushed immediately as he turned to leave as quickly as possible. "sorry, i'll just-."

 He immediately scuttled out of the bathroom, Zerrus's face beet red and heated. Quickly pulling on the tabard and tucking the undershirt in the breeches, she brushed some of her hair over her left eye. In the same motion, she managed to cover the scar. Turning to leave the room, she bent over to grab the boots that went with her uniform.

 Sitting in the chair, Sans tugged at his sleeves. "You needed something." She calmly called out, attempting to ignore what had just happened.

 "heh. yeah." Sans replied, fliddling with the sleeves again. "was gonna ask if you could help me with these sleeves."

 Zerrus nodded, crossing over to him and tucking the sleeves. A small frown started drawing on her face. She recognized the dress shirt as one of her dad's old shirts. She also picked up the slightest hint of her dad's favorite cologne still embedded in the fabric. Her frown immediately shifted to a smile.

 "everything okay?" Sans broke her trance, her gaze flickering back up to him.

 "Yeah. Just recognized the shirt." She replied. Fixing his shirt collar, she pushed herself up onto the side of the bed. "You look nice, Al Cabone."

 "heh. good one." She bent down to fasten the laces on her boots, buckling them into place. "what's that symbol on your shirt mean?"

 "It's the symbol of the kingdom, the Sacred Tree. We're actually pretty close to the tree itself, so we can feel the residual magic radiating from it the closer we get." She responded while straightening her tabard. "The banquet is being held in the community center just a few blocks away from the Tree. Expect your magic to be altered in some manner."

 Pulling up on the community center, Zerrus stepped out of her car at the same time as Sans. Stepping up to the front door, she stalled. Sans stopped in his tracks and turned to face her. "something wrong?"

 Something WAS wrong; she felt a strange tingle shoot up her back. When she feels that tingle, something bad is going to happen. She couldn't possibly let Sans know that she's got a bad feeling about the operation. "It's nothing... let's just focus."

 A snappily dressed greeter stepped up to Sans and Zerrus, a clipboard in hand. "Greetings and welcome to the Monster/Human Banquet. We are having a raffle this year for everyone who arrives in pairs. May I ask for your names please?"

 "sans." he replied with a casual smile. The greeter quickly jotted his name down, then turned to look at Zerrus.

 "Zerrus." she answered, keeping eye contact with the greeter as he scanned her. "I don't expect to win anything. The odds of us winning is rather small based on the number of pairings inside already."

 "I would hope you do! Please, enjoy yourselves!" they smiled as they waved them off. She felt that familiar tingle once again, struggling to keep herself from turning around and giving him a glance with her reticle.

 "you're uneasy..." Sans mumbled to her. She kept her gaze up, scanning each and every person in front of her. She mostly saw a mist of green among the guests.

 "Thanks for stating the obvious." Zerrus coldly responded, the tingling up her spine intensifying the closer she got to the crowd. Her eyesight immediately flickered over a small cloud of red. She leaned in closer to Sans. "I see a few threats off to the right. I'll be keeping a close watch on them."

 Stopping at a random table, she and Sans sat and watched over the crowd discreetly. A waiter dropped off two glasses of sparkling champagne in front of them. "can't help but notice people are staring at you a lot."

 "Understandable. Not often you see a former member of the Royal Guard."

 The sound of a microphone being tested stole her attention. "Hello. Welcome to this years Sanctuary Banquet. This year, we are joined by the newest addition to the Sacred Grove." spoke an elegant, pointed-eared, woman. "It is with great honor and pride that I welcome monsters to our vast land and kingdom."

 "hey zerrus, that lady looks kinda like you. do you know her?" Sans whispered to her.

 "That's Queen Valerian. She's the chosen ruler of the Sacred Grove." Zerrus explained quietly.

 "chosen? what... like a vote?"

 "No. Chosen by the Heartseed, the lifeforce of the planet. The previous king and queen were assassinated in their chambers."

 Valerian continued her speech.

 "I was secretly hoping a certain citizen would arrive today, and it seems my hopes have been answered." The lights in the community center darkened, the stagelights centering on Zerrus's position directly. "Please... come up here. Your monster friend may come up too."

 Zerrus and Sans looked at each other, her eyes wide and his blank. Standing up and cautiously approaching the stage, she stood next to Valerian. "Your Majesty." she bowed slightly.

 "If it were not for the actions of this employ, I would not be standing here today. I would like for her to tell the story of how she came to save the Sacred Grove to our newest members of the kingdom. Zerrus?"

 Zerrus cleared her throat, tugging on Sans's sleeve slightly to gesture for him to stand close to her. She stood behind the podium and looked over the crowd. The cloud of red remained where they had been when she first saw them. "Several years ago, I used to be a mere adventurer. I travelled from every corner of the Grove; from Blackspore to Snowhill. I was travelling near the Lavendar Coast when I spotted a royal courier, ambushed by bandit chugawugs. I merely wanted to help him, not to be thrown into the web of lies sewn by Geoffrey."

 "Geoffrey, Queen Valerian's former advisor, plotted to poison her and claim the Heartseed in the name of the Gloam. He sent me on a wild chase, trying to set his plan in motion. After I discovered his plans and the actions of his past, I incited judgement on him, thus sparing the Heartseed and saving Queen Valerian's life. However... having come into contact with his dark magic, he manipulated my body's cells. Now I possess magic capable of dispelling anything that threatens me, or our planet."

 Stepping back from the podium, she slunk back into the shadows. She eyed the area where she sighted the red, only to note that the cloud had shrunk. "Thank you, Zerrus. Due to her bravery, I appointed her as a member of the Royal Guard. Those amongst the Guard gave her a codename, Rainbow Wind." Valerian announced, turning to look at her. "You may return to your table. Thank you."

 Several minutes later, she and Sans were bothered by many different guests. The last guest finally left them alone, allowing Zerrus to speak to everyone on the comm-links. "We got a problem. I sighted a section of guests that registered as dangerous. After having explained my story, the group thinned. I have had yet to sight the missing members. Stay on alert."

 Standing up from their table, Zerrus stepped up to Sans and held him in a sort of hug. "uhh? zerrus?" he stuttered slightly.

 "I'm picking up homicidal energies. Directed at US. If we don't split from the crowd, we could risk genocide. We gotta created a diversion. Maybe an excuse of us both having to use the bathroom or something."

 Shimmying their way through the crowd, they stood in the hallway of the bathrooms. "thanks for showing me where it is." Sans acted, heading towards the men's section.

 Nodding curtly, she stepped in the women's restroom. Splashing some cold water on her face, she felt as though someone was staring at her intently. Wheeling around to look at the source, she was met with the butt of a handgun slamming into the side of her head, knocking her out immediately.

 Slowly opening her eyes, she felt ropes secured tightly around her body, pinning her arms behind her. Zerrus blunk a few times to clear her vision, only to see the barrel of a pistol aimed at her face. "Finally up, doll?" taunted a masculine voice.

 "Do I look like I'm made of plush? I ain't no doll, douche." she snapped back.

 "Such a dirty mouth on ya, eh? Don't matter. If we get rid of you, we can get the Queen to ban all monsters back to that mountain."

 "Ha! Dude... seriously? Look, I've had people TRY to kill me over FAR more ridiculous shit than THIS. If they couldn't kill me, what makes you think you stand a chance?" Zerrus taunted back, wiggling to break free from her confines.

 "Cause this time, we beat ya to the punch." The strange man tapped his gun on her neck, the sound of metal tapping against metal echoing in the dark room. "Know what that is?" Zerrus glanced down and caught sight of a metal collar closed around her neck.

 "Some sick game?"

 "Nope. It's a magic inhibitor. You and your little friend ain't gonna be able to use your magic." He stepped up to Zerrus, bending down so he was eye level with her. "Thanks to Val, all we gotta do is take care of YOU and our Master will be able to claim his right."

 "master? ha. so you're just a pet?" Sans cackled from behind Zerrus. She turned her head slightly to note he was tied with their backs to each other. She then brought her glare directly back to their captor.

 "Why him?" she demanded, her eye flickering from lack of magic.

 "Well, our best men found out that this little guy is the most powerful boss monster from the Underground. With the both of you out of the picture, things will go off without a hitch." he taunted back, flicking Zerrus's forehead and stepping out of the room.

 Growling, Zerrus turned to look at Sans. "so. how'd they catch you?" he asked, leaning his skull back against her head slightly.

 "Jumped me in the shitter... You?" she responded, wiggling in her binds slightly.

 "same." Sans sighed almost silently, Zerrus continuing to wiggle in the ropes in earnest now. "got an itch or something?"

 "Yeah. An itch to kick that piece of shit's ass." She managed to free a single hand. Her left hand. Staring at her left hand, she focused on summoning any form of magic to help her break through the ropes.

 After several minutes of straining, Zerrus finally gave up. She slouched back into Sans, he chuckled lightly. "makes you wonder, doesn't it?" She glanced up at him. "how on earth did humans figure out how to make these magic inhibitors?"

 "It wasn't humans." Zerrus stated.

 "oh? then who? i doubt it was monsters."

 "It was the Pixie race. I should know." She dropped her head, whimpering slightly. "I was partially responsible for its creation."

 "how?"

 "You heard my story. The one where Geoffrey had betrayed the kingdom. Well... there's more to it than that." She shifted in the ropes, attempting to get more comfortable. "Geoffrey used a dark magic against me as he died. Literally altered my whole body. I USED to be a human, Sans."

 "used to be? you mean... you aren't a human?"

 "Not anymore. I've done quite a bit of thinking... the only reason I resemble that of an eternal guardian is simply because I am now a sort of Human-Pixie hybrid. Roughly 2 years after the events in the Royal Palace, shit went down in Seaside. The best part of that mess? It was my birthday."

 "wow. that sucks."

 "That's the simplest way to say it..." Zerrus stared forward, wiggling her free hand in an attempt to call for help on her earpiece, shaped like an earring stud. "I think they found the comm-links. Can't contact Bravo or Charlie. Must've scrambled our signal."

 "why did the pixies create these collars?"

 "Well Sans, everyone in the Sacred Grove knows that the magic keeping this world alive comes from Pixies. Geoffrey was a Pixie and misused the gift bestowed to him by his lineage. After that happened, our most intelligent scientists pooled together to create a means to seal away magic by a simple item." Zerrus directly tapped the collar with her free hand. "And before you ask, the only way to disable the inhibitor is to have the keycode."

 "what about breaking out without magic?"

 Zerrus turned her head to look at Sans, his eyelights focused on her red eyes. "Maybe..."


	26. Finally Met

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When the banquet at Santuary goes terribly wrong, Zerrus and Sans must now find their way out of their captors grip.

 

 Taking a deep breath, Zerrus focused all of her strength into her upperbody. Straining against the rope tying Sans and herself down, she felt the strands making up the binds snap one by one. The thick material of the rope dug into her arms, causing her to stop and groan in pain. She continued this process several times.

 

 Then, the rope snapped. Sans and Zerrus both pushed away from each other. "nice." Sans commented, looking at the remains of the rope and over to Zerrus.

 

 "Only thing not nice about that will be the rope burn on my arms. That was NOT the smartest move... but it was all I could come up with." she remarked, stepping over to a dark corner of the room and crouching down. "We don't have magic to help us through this, Sans. I'll have to rely on my combat skills to get us out of here."

 

 She looked towards the door, signalling for Sans to come to her. The sounds of footsteps echoing down the hall caused them to still, holding their breaths and listening closely. The footsteps stopped just in front of the room, Zerrus extended her arm in front of Sans and glanced at him. He nodded and sunk down into the shadows.

 

 The door opened slowly, Zerrus crept up towards the door while remaining hidden by the limited lighting of the room. A man dressed in a white dress shirt and black slacks strode in the room, a pistol in hand. She immediately recognized him as the man who punted her with his gun in the bathroom. Holding back a growl, she snuck up closer to the man and caught him in a choke hold.

 

 "If you value your life, you'll drop your weapon." she threatened, grabbing at the pistol and tightening her grip. The man hastily complied, his breathing turning shallow. Taking the gun, she immediately cocked the weapon and released him. "Don't say a word unless I say to."

 

 He hastily nodded in compliance, raising his arms up and looking directly at her.

 

 "Good. Now, where are we?"

 

 "Merry Vale Caverns." he bluntly replied.

 

 "You transported us from Sanctuary to Merry Vale? How the fuck did you manage that without drawing any attention?" He shrugged. "Why did you attack us and tie us up?"

 

 "Boss's orders. He said to bring Rainbow Wind and their accomplice here. That he will take care of you himself."

 

 "Fat chance. Now... what's the code to disable these damn inhibitors?"

 

 "I don't know. You'd have to get it from Cahtke." Zerrus frowned, then turned to grab the remnants of the rope. She gestured for him to walk over to the beam, he complied without a fight. She then proceeded to tie him to the beam securely, leaving enough slack to make sure he could breathe. "If it's any consolation... I didn't want to do this. After hearing your story, I started to have second thoughts. If you were brave enough to face Geoffrey... and if you felt that monsters were no threat... who are we to judge?"

 

 "Your point?"

 

 "Your judgement proved that something insidious was planned for the fate of the Grove. If your judgement has never been proven wrong... why should we dispute that?"

 

 "You can't sweeten me up into letting you go. Be grateful I haven't shot you yet." Zerrus tied the final knot and stood up. "One last question: who is Cahtke and where do we find them?"

 

 "Cahtke is our chief engineer. She's usually at the Rainbow Spire."

 

 "Thanks." Zerrus turned to face Sans and nodded, clicking the safety off on the pistol and checking its ammunition. "I don't plan on using this... but I might not have a choice."

 

 "you sure you wanna risk raising your LOVE?" Sans interrogated.

 

 "Look, I won't have a choice if these guys sound the alarm. Running is out of the question without our magic! Besides... ever since Zehanpuryu sacrificed herself, I've felt my power wane. I did a self check. My LOVE is 1." She turned towards the door, pressing against it and listening closely for any sounds of footsteps. "We'll try to be silent about this... but if this Cahtke calls for security..."

 

 "i get it. let's get outta here."

 

 Sticking to the shadows, Zerrus and Sans crept along the walls of the facility. She held up her hand and aimed the pistol. Attempting to use her eye to see through the darkness, she felt a slight zap from the collar. Hissing slightly, she shut her eye tightly and refocused on her natural eyesight. Spotting the faint outline of a guard, she turned to look at Sans.

 

 "Contact dead ahead." she whispered, signalling to Sans the location of the guard. "I'll try to subdue him."

 

 Zerrus crept forward, pistol in hand. Sneaking up behind the guard, still hidden in the shadows, she grabbed him in a police hold. Cutting off airflow to the brain, she knocked him clean out. Looking over to Sans, she beckoned him over. "is he gonna be ok?"

 

 "Yeah. Just knocked him out. He'll be like this for a couple hours." She rummaged through his pockets, grabbing a second handgun and taking whatever ammunition was on him. "I know these caves well. Spent a lot of time exploring them when I was young."

 

 "so you know where this rainbow spire is?"

 

 "Yeah. It's the most well-known structure in the south-western Grove. It's a tourist attraction, really."

 

 "then why are these guys here?"

 

 "We'll just have to get the answer out of Cahtke. Though... I don't think it'll be easy. But once we do... we gotta get out of here one way or the other." Sans made a confused grunting sound, causing Zerrus to sigh. "If we can't disable these stupid inhibitors, we may have to steal one of their rides. I know how to get to Sanctuary from here."

 

 "been here a lot?"

 

 "I guess you could say that..." Zerrus checked the ammunition in the second handgun, nodding with a grin drawn on her face as she turned towards the corridor. She then held the pistol towards Sans, the safety clicked. "Know how to use one of these?"

 

 Sans shook his head, his eyes growing dark. The sound of a door squealing open caused them to stall. After several moments of silence and nobody having exited the room, Zerrus and Sans advanced cautiously towards the now opened room. A faint green light shone from just behind the door. Peaking into the room, she saw no signs of anyone in the room.

 

 This raised questions for her. If nobody was in the room, and nobody left the room, how did the door open? Slowly creeping into the room, she spotted the source of the green light. It was a computer terminal, open and logged in. Standing up and tip-toeing towards the monitor, she holstered the pistol and accessed the terminal.

 

 What appeared on the screen caushed her to still.

 

TARGET  
NAME: ZERRUS XY TEKNIANU  
GENDER: FEMALE  
AGE: 20  
ETHNICITY: CAUCASIAN  
HAIR COLOR: BLUE  
EYE COLOR: RED  
HEIGHT: 5'6  
WEIGHT: 206  
RACE: UNKNOWN  
 DUE TO PROCEDURE ENIGMA-4.17, SUBJECT SUSTAINED EXCEPTIONAL AMOUNT OF DNA ALTERATION. RACE SHALL REMAIN UNKNOWN/UNDETERMINED UNTIL SUBJECT HAS BEEN RESUBMITTED TO THE FACILITY. USE CAUTION WHEN APPROACHING. IN EVENT OF EMERGENCY, USE SUBJECT'S ACTIVATION CODE.  
   
 "Subject? Resubmitted?!" Zerrus practically shouted, her magic almost immediately flaring up and forcing the collar to shock her. Stumbling from the shock, she fell backwards, right into Sans. Catching her, he held her up while straining, her legs shaking from the shock. Her left eye flickered brightly, then eased to a continuous fog of blue and red magic. "What the hell does this mean?"

 

 "It means that you don't exist." answered an unknown voice. Zerrus and Sans both wheeled around to turn towards the source of the voice. Raising both pistols, she narrowed her eyes at a green haired woman in a lab coat. Her hair reached to her rear, her eyes were a vivid pink, and her skin was a cool misty blue. A set of fuschia butterfly wings tapered down her back. "Best not to shoot me, Zerrus."

 

 "You better explain before I blow your fucking brains out."

 

 "Surprised you don't recognize my voice. Maybe this name will ring a bell; Soothing Sky."

 

 "Soothing... Sky? Wait. Are you the one responsible for bringing us here and latching these damn collars on us like animals?!"

 

 "I had no choice. The fact your magic is manifesting while still being inhibited shows that you are not human nor a monster." Soothing Sky paced over towards her. "I doubt I need to remind you of what happened in Seaside 2 years ago."

 

 "Yeah. I remember. I remember it like a fucking bullet to the head." she growled out, tightening her grip on the pistol. "What's that got to do with anything?"

 

 "Simple. When Azula kidnapped you and had her scientists experiment on you, she altered not just your body-" Soothing Sky turned to face Zerrus, holding her hand out and calling her soul. Zerrus's soul lurched out of her chest violently, the shimmering blue and red light bouncing all around the room. "-it altered the very core of your being... your SOUL."

 

 Sans's eyelights vanished, his gaze drawn between the monitor, Zerrus, and then Soothing Sky. "what sick freak would do that?" he snarled, his fists balled up.

 

 "Azula wanted nothing more than to take over the Free Realms. What happened to Zerrus and her family was only a prelude to that day." She turned to look at Sans, raising her left hand. Her fingers sparked a bright pink shade, the magic radiating off of her bouncing off of them. With a snap of her fingers, the collars around their necks shattered. "Were it not for Zerrus's actions, the entire planet would've succumbed to a much darker power than what you experienced, sir."

 

 "You mean the Gloam... don't you?" Zerrus muttered, the magic fire dying down and returning her eyes to their normal red hue. Soothing Sky nodded, then paced back over to Zerrus. "According to Zehanpuryu's records, the Gloam Council teamed up with the Gleam in order to banish Chara to the Underground. Are you saying that Chara wasn't the true threat to the planet?"

 

 "Unfortunately, yes." Soothing Sky walked over to the computer terminal, typing something as the profile of Zerrus was closed down. "The mutual companionship was only to eliminate Chara as a threat to the Gloam. The Gleam were tricked into removing their ultimate weapon, really." A display image of Chara was shown on the screen, drawing Zerrus and Sans's undivided attention to the computer monitor. "Chara's relentless nature was both a gift and a curse. They were determined to destroy anything that got in their way, even innocent bystanders."

 

 "yeah. they were so determined that they killed everyone in the underground. what else do you know?" Sans hissed.

 

 The sound of many different foot patterns snapped their gazes towards the door. Soothing Sky rushed over to the door and shut it, flipping the lock and pressing against it. She looked up to Zerrus and Sans, fear in her eyes as she heard the footsteps approaching even faster. "They went in here!"

 

 "You have to escape! Here!" Soothing Sky half-shouted, half-whispered. She tossed a set of keys over to Zerrus, catching them in mid-air and looking at her in shock. "Take my bike. It's just outside the caverns. They won't follow you back to Sanctuary." She bumped forward as someone or something slammed against the door, jarring her a bit. "Go through the vents! HURRY!"

 

 "Why can't we just tele-?" Zerrus started.

 

 "They'll pick up the excess magical discharge from the act! Just... GO!"


	27. Daring Escape

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zerrus finally meets Soothing Sky, but at a price. She learns that the men who captured them were somehow responsible for the attack on Seaside in the past.

  
 Crawling through the vents of the facility, Zerrus and Sans quietly shifted in the narrow space. She used the magic flames of her eye to light up the dark space, Sans mimicking the same action as they looked down different paths they could crawl through. Stopping abrubtly, Sans bumped into her leg. "what's up?"

 "If we continue this way, we'll end up falling into the cavern waterfall." Zerrus pointed forward. She then pointed to the left. "If we go THIS way, we'll be in another chamber. Odds are, there will be more guys in there." She pointed to the right. "As for this vent... I don't quite remember what was over there."

 A static ripped through the air around them, causing Zerrus to duck her head at the shrill sound. "Zerrus, I'll be sending a sprite to guide you to the safest route in the base." muttered Soothing Sky's voice as the static warbled. A little puff of light hovered just in front of her nose, causing her to scrunch it up as a reaction.

 "Sprite...? Sure you didn't mean dust bunny...?" she mumbled to herself, scuttling after the tiny ball of light. Her hand landed on nothing, sending her tumbling down into the unknown room face-first. Landing gracefully before colliding with the floor, she looked up to see Sans staring down at her with eyelights blown.

 "you good?" he inquired, staying up in the vents. She looked around the room only to find no signs of any threat.

 "I'm fine." Zerrus responded, standing up and dusting off her uniform. "You gonna come down here, or am I gonna have to get this little dust bunny to drag you?" He smirked slightly, then pushed himself out of the vent like he had butter on his stomach. Flopping down into a soft pile, Sans seemingly disappeared from existence in the pile of whatever.

 She peeked into the pile only to see his smug grin, wider than ever. The tiny sprite fluttered between them, almost pulling the both of them with it as it guided them through the dark room. They crept up to a door the sprite had led them, hovering in front of it and waiting for them to open it. Zerrus slowly opened the door, a cold air blasting them as it was opened further.

 What caught her eye was a variety of motorcycles and trucks, all parked in line. "This must be their parking garage, if the number of vehicles is anything to go by." Zerrus analyzed, turning to face Sans. "Take your pick, boneboy."

 "huh?" Sans questioned, tilting his skull to see her face.

 "Choose a vehicle. I'll hotwire it and drive us home." Her eye flashed for a brief moment, then turned to look towards another door in the garage. "Better hurry up and make a decision. Looks like we're pressed on time."

 "why make me choose? aren't you little miss tech?"

 "Don't get smart with me, Sans. Either you pick, or I'll toss you in the back of one of those trucks." Her eye flashed brighter, the reticle trained on his face.

 "okay. okay. you win." He stepped forward, standing next to the first motorcycle closest to the exit. Nodding at his choice, Zerrus rushed over to the vehicle. She immediately climbed up and started hotwiring it, trying to jumpstart the engine. The engine rumbled to life. Loudly.

 "What the fuck?" shouted a voice from behind the metal door.

 "Dammit! Sans, get on and grab on! This is gonna be a rough ride!" Zerrus yelled, gesturing for him to hop up on the seat. He complied without fighting, then stuttered slightly. "Yo, if you wanna get tossed off this thing while we book it, DON'T grab onto me. If you wanna live, DO IT!"

 He hesitantly grabbed on to her tabard, closer to the waist, and gripped as tight as he could. Hitting the gas, the bike shot forward down the parking garage. The tiny sprite rushed beside them, lighting  their way and continuing to guide them. Zerrus and Sans both ducked down, avoiding the bits and pieces of dirt and twigs that shot by them as they barreled through the caverns.

 The light of the outside world jolted them both, causing Zerrus to squint and Sans to shut his eyes entirely. She hit the brakes and slammed her foot down towards the ground, sending them skidding to a halt and turning to the left. "Hold on!" she yelled, revving the engines and accelerating forward.

 The sound of multiple vehicles landing in the dirt behind them caught their attention. Zerrus looked through the side mirror and noted 3 trucks and a few bikes rushing towards them. Sans turned and looked back, noticing the threat and clung on to her even tighter and the motorcycle lurched forward again.

 "Looks like we got some company. Can you use ANY of your magic yet?" Zerrus asked, focusing forward and weaving through the local area.

 "nah. the effects of that dampener's got my magic sleeping. won't be able to use it for a while." Sans responded, watching in almost fear as the vehicles kept approaching. "got anything up your sleeves, tech?"

 "Only one... but you're not gonna like it." Zerrus sharply turned to the right, extending her arm and grazing a tree trunk with her fingertips. Her eye flashed brightly as the tree started shuddering and shaking off stray leaves. A loud cracking sound caused Sans to look next to them to see the tree splintering.

 The tree splintered in half, sending half of the tree falling one way, and the other half another. They crashed down on 2 of the trucks, stopping them almost immediately. A sparking sound caught his attention, turning his gaze back over to Zerrus as her body shone slightly. On instinct, he checked her stats.

 ZERRUS TEKNIANU LV 1   HP |   | 417/417

 *Check

 ATK 324  DEF 96  EXP 0

 *A Guardian chosen to protect the innocent. Swears to help those around her, regardless of ethnicity.

 Sans mentally sighed in relief, but still remained confused about what that strange surge of power was that circled her. He instead gripped on to her tabard even tighter as the ground shook from the impact of the tree. He glanced behind them to see only 3 motorcycles behind them.

 "How's it looking back there, boneboy?" she called back to him, her eyes glued in front of them.

 "only got 3 more. you're not gonna knock down more trees, are you?" Sans questioned.

 "Nah. Just thinking about something that sounds really stupid."

 "what?"

 "Thinking about sending this bike over one of the cliffs nearby. I can use a little bit of magic I've been working on to confuse them into thinking it's really us."

 "you're not making any sense." His eyes went blank, almost staring directly into her and her plan.

 "The cliffs around here are surrounded by water. If they try to follow us, they'll either stop or fall. If they stop, we can neutralize them and steal their rides." Zerrus explained, hooking a sharp left around a large boulder and causing one of the remaining motorcycles to crash into the rock. "Okay. THAT was a my bad."

 "you sure this will work?"

 "I'm not sure of anything. I'm just winging it." The bike bobbed as they hit a bumpy path of the hillside, Sans's grip tightening on her waist in a near death-grip. "Yeah... better hold on. This is gonna be bumpy." She sped upwards up the hill, dirt flying behind them.

 After bobbing and weaving around brush and rocks, time slowing around them, Zerrus turned in one swift motion and grabbed Sans's sleeve. She kicked off of the bike and sent them flying into the bushes nearby, the bike kareening off the edge of the cliff and into the water below. The sound of screeching tires brought their gaze up, watching as the two remaining motorcycles stopped just in front of them.

 Huddling down a bit further into the bushes, one of the men stepped towards the edge of the cliff. Looking over the edge, he watched the ripples of water start to ebb away. "Damn idiots drove off the edge." one of them commented.

 "Think they're dead?" asked the other as he approached.

 "Maybe. That monster seemed too lazy to even SWIM to safety."

 "Yeah! And that Royal Guard didn't seem very smart seeing as how they were CAPTURED by our worst members! Why'd the boss want these idiots anyways?"

 "We won't know now." Just as they turned around, Zerrus's pupil flashed. A shockwave shoved the both of them up into the air and down the cliff. Rushing over to the cliff edge, she bent down in time to see them splash into the water.

 "Let's be honest, Sans. They kinda deserved that after what they said." Zerrus grumbled a bit, turning to look at Sans with a smirk. She immediately noticed that he had a mixture of emotions written on his skull; shock, judgement, and pride. "Don't give me that look. They aren't injured. The worst they got is maybe some bruises from the splash into the water. Looked like a freaking belly flop from up here."

 "those hurt you humans?" Sans asked, stepping closer to Zerrus to look over the edge with her. The two men were swimming towards the shore, the sounds of their panic reaching to top of the cliff.

 "Only if you land square on your back or your stomach. Think of it like being slapped by an iron fist." Zerrus turned and swung her leg over the nearest motorcycle. "Know how to drive one of these?"

 "more or less." She turned and shot Sans a look, her eyes judging him. "you know this area way better than me. best if i cling to you."

 "Fine. Just, one second. I gotta contact Dat and the others now that we're safe." Calling out her soul, she barely grazed the surface and a mixture of blue and red spell circles surrounded them. "Dat. If you can hear me, tell the others that I'm fine. Sans is here too. I'll explain everything once we get back to the house."

 She placed her soul back into her chest and turned to face Sans. He was fiddling with his fingers, magic sparks dusting off his fingertips. A scowl was drawn across his face as he struggled with his magic. "Having problems, Mr. Sans?" called out a familiar voice. Zerrus and Sans turned their attention towards the voice to find Soothing Sky exiting a pitch black van and strutting towards them.

 "Kinda brave confronting us after your stupid little sprite led us directly into trouble." Zerrus barked out, her eye flashing slightly and magic fire ghosting over her fingers. "What's the big idea helping us escape then setting us up?"

 "I led you to the garage to sneak out. Not to hijack one of the vehicles stowed there." she snapped back.

 "Tch."

 "It was your own fault getting caught. Though I must admit, you did an exceptional job in diverting them."

 "divert? more like throwing a tree on them and tossing them over a cliff..." Sans remarked, crossing his arms and passing a glance at Zerrus. The look on her face spelled anger, her posture of annoyance.

 "Not like you had any plans, boneboy. You were busy grabbing my ass." She growled at him.

 "Argue later, Teknianu. In case you forgot, you've attracted some very unwanted attention from the faction. So, unless you want those collars on you again, you'd better get back to Sanctuary." Soothing Sky gestured to her truck. "Queen Valerian put out an order that anyone suspected of being within the HAM faction are to be immediately apprehended and interrogated. This order was put in place when you did not return during the banquet."

 "And you think that people won't find it suspicious that we show up out of nowhere?"

 "Just trust me, Teknianu. You and Mr. Sans are the only remaining hope against the faction."


	28. A Heated Reunion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After escaping their captors, Zerrus and Sans recover from the incident back in Sanctuary. However...

  
 It had been several days since Sans and Zerrus returned to Sanctuary, their friends and many civilians asking if they were okay. Zerrus eventually shut herself away from everyone, turning back to her little projects and repairing something in her underground workshop. Sans kept close to Papyrus, insisting that he was okay and nothing bad happened. However, he was relatively concerned about how Zerrus was locking herself away from everyone and shutting him out.

 The sound of the air tearing brought her attention behind her, her hair disheveled and dark circles under her eyes. "Mmh." she grunted at him, turning her attention back to what she was working on.

 "what's wrong with you?" he spoke sternly. Zerrus put down her clipboard and turned to him again. "you rarely talk to us. paps is worried about you."

 "Mph." She grunted firmer, heading back to her work and turning her back to him.

 "talk to me, dammit!"

 "She won't, Mr. Sans." spoke Soothing Sky as she stepped out from behind a strange mechanical pod. "She's been focused on her project. Once she sets her mind to something, she won't stop."

 "i'm aware of that, sky. but why is she shutting me out like this?" he barked out, gesturing at Zerrus.

 "I made a promise." Zerrus mumbled, her voice scratchy and cracking. She flopped onto her back and slid under the pod, toolbox at her side. Grabbing a wrench, she fiddled with the pod in an attempt to get it running.

 "Teknianu does not take promises lightly, Mr. Sans. Surely you, of all souls know that." Soothing Sky explained, crouching down and working on a keypad welded on the front.

 "zerrus, you sound terrible. have you even slept at all since starting on this thing?" Sans asked, kneeling down to get a better look at her as she worked. Zerrus lowered her arm, peeking over at him with dim eyes and shook her head. "why are you doing this to yourself? is this promise worth risking falling down?"

 "Sahqo..." her voiced cracked, causing her to cough roughly and clear her throat. "Sahqo needs my help."

 "sahqo? who's that?"

 The machine whirred to life, a series of coding scrolling across the display along with an image of a much darker Snowdin. Zerrus slid out from under the pod and dusted off her clothes. She wore a brown sweater, a symbol printed on her left breast, faded black jeans, and a pair of scuffed up black work boots. The scar on her face looked slightly inflamed, her target reticle dimmed and her skin pale.

 "zerrus, what's wrong with snowdin? i've never seen it this dark before." Sans mumbled, stepping closer to the display to get a closer look. On the display, a few monsters wandered by the view, their attire much more different than what he was used to seeing. "why are there monsters in the underground? i thought they were all free."

 "Alternate." Zerrus squeaked out, entering a sequence into the terminal and watching as the machine processed the command prompt. The sliding door of the pod opened, Zerrus went to step inside when Sans grabbed her sleeve. "Come?"

 "i'm not letting you go anywhere til you get some sleep."

 "Mr. Sans, please understand her viewpoint. Teknianu is pressed on time, and she already has a very sparse amount. Her duties as a Guardian tethers her to the defense of the temporal planes as well as the physical. If she does not go, she forfeits her powers and risks execution by another Guardian." Soothing Sky explained, prying Sans's hands off of Zerrus and shoving her hands into her lab coat. "If you are that concerned about her Mr. Sans, perhaps you should stay with her. Asuar needs to remain in this temporal plane to ensure there are no fractures."

 "fractures?"

 "Reset." Zerrus coughed, clearing her throat more firmly and grabbing Sans hoodie. "Resets can fracture the temporal plane."

 "According to Teknianu, a Gleam warrior named Zehanpuryu Ithquant used to live in this alternate universe. Due to her soul burst, she erased her existance in all temporal planes. Based on what Teknianu told me, Ms. Ithquant's erasure may have affected their plane, resulting in a 'reset'." Soothing Sky paced, loading up a diagram on a large monitor and pointing to it. "If what Teknianu fears is correct, there is a temporal fracture within this universe and others. She has already traversed the alternate universe codenamed Underfell and is aware of how to deal with the residents there."

 "so you're going to jump from universes and fix the problem?" Sans asked, turning to look at Zerrus as she crossed her arms. She nodded to him. "well, i'm not letting you do this alone. but i know how the timelines can be affected, so i can't go."

 "You are afraid of risking a complete crash of the universe, aren't you Mr. Sans?"

 "look here." Sans pointed at the display on the pod, a darker version of Sans shambled by the screen. "there's a sans right there. what if he sees me and tries to dust me?"

 "He could risk a domino effect. Red may be dumb, but he knows not to fuck with me after I socked him." Zerrus growled out, peeling off her dusty sweater and slipping on a blue jacket with red fur lining. "Either you come with me, or you stay behind. Your choice, boneboy."

 Resigning his fears, he stepped into the pod next to her and threw up his hood. "i still don't think this is a smart idea."

 "Your comments are recognized, but what choice do we have? I can't risk Dat coming along. If we both die, it's over. We need to have BOTH Eternal Guardians alive in order for us to fix this. If one dies, the other can revive them. It's hard to explain Sans, but you're just gonna have to trust me." The machine lit up, cloaking them in a light sheen and sending them through the void once more.

 Popping into the universe of Underfell, Zerrus turned and looked at her surroundings. "this is snowdin... but the air here feels... heavy." Sans remarked, ducking a bit further into his hoodie.

 "In this world, it's kill or be killed. The air feels heavy from all the negativity." Zerrus analyzed, scanning around the snow in search of Red. "Knowing Red, he'll sneak up behind me and do your whole 'don't you know how to greet a new pal' skit."

 "does he have a whoopie cushion?"

 "No whoopie... and the cushion is my face." The sound of a branch snapping brought her attention up. "Let's keep moving. Once Red knows who I am, he should be able to help. Just keep your head down and DON'T say who you are."

 After stomping through the snow, Zerrus stopped at the gate and glanced over at Sans. A slightly blue tinged sweat drop had gathered on his skull, his eyelights shrinking. And as if on cue, "H U M A N."

 Turning on her heel and catching the fist aimed at her face, she smirked at the shocked look on Red's face. "Sup?" Zerrus chirped, watching his free hand flinch slightly. "Miss me, Red?"

 "red?" he mumbled, his eyelights darking and his grin twitching higher. "who the fuck are ya?"

 "I'm the legendary fartmaster. You should know that." Sans snorted next to her, immediately throwing up his hands to his face to muffle his laughter. Once again, as if on cue, Red initiated a confrontation with Zerrus. Summoning two of his blasters, he snarled loudly at her. "Ah geez... thought this would go off without a hitch, but it seems old habits die hard."

 Her pupil flashing brightly, Opi and Visi popped into existance behind her. Five of her chains twirled around her and her grin widened. Throwing her arm forward, her chains lashed out towards Red and closed the distance. Time slowed once again as she watched Red's body tear into fragments as he slipped into the void. Hearing the faint sound of the air tearing again, she turned around to see Red smirking directly above her, his golden canine glinting in the dim light of Snowdin.

 Rolling out of the way of his bone attack, she brought up her arm as his blasters fired on her position. A spell circle hovered in front of her arms, blocking the white hot magic and splashing off of her. Opi hovered next to her head, it's target reticle zeroing in on Red's position. Zerrus's pupil flickered slightly, watching as he swiftly moved from his position while the blaster remained firing at her.

 What she wasn't expecting was for Red to pounce on top of her, punching away Opi and Visi in a very swift motion that her eye couldn't catch and pinning her down into the snow. Sans, from a fair distance away, had knicked Red with a bone attack of his own. Red glared deeply at Sans, his fangs bared to him. "stay the fuck outta this, ya little shit!"

 "OI! You can call ME names, BUT DON'T YOU DARE INSULT MY FRIENDS!" Zerrus snapped, using her chains to bind Red by his arms and legs and throw him into a nearby tree. Sitting up and brushing the snow off of her coat, she grumbled and approached him. "I figured that you'd react that way. You did last time. Pretty sure you broke my nose then." Zerrus turned and saw Sans wink at her from behind the tree a few feet away. "Thanks man."

 "no prob." Sans repsonded, turning to step out from behind the tree. "gotta admit though, it looked pretty wierd watching you fight another me."

 "are you a fuckin' dumbass?! why the hell would you bring another sans here?!" Red barked out, struggling against the chains.

 "Oh, so you DO recognize me. Looks like the only dumbass here is you. You should've known after the last time that I wouldn't go down without a fight." Zerrus grumbled, her eye flashing bright again. "I'm pretty sure you know why I'm here then."

 "yeah... the fuckin' universe tore itself a new hole. i thought you said you didn't care what happened to this universe. why show yer face after sayin' that?!"

 "Cause thanks to the actions of your sugar baby, the entire structure of all universes are in jeopardy! Unless you want the fate of the universes tearing apart cause of your bravado, don't be a bitch and kill the only one who can FIX THIS!"

 Red ducked his head down, grumbling under his breath slightly. "fine... just don't go stabbin' me in the back."


	29. History

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After being attacked in Underfell by Red, Zerrus continues on her quest to find the temporal breaks. But, not before informing them of her ancestry.

  
 "so that's yer name..." Red mused, leaning against the wall of his house and staring at the floor. "zehan never mentioned ya before. but fer some reason, hearin' that name sounds familiar to me. like i've known ya all my life."

 "Would make sense. Thanks to the power of Pixie Life magic, those recognized by the Heartseed are sewn in the memories and lives of others, regardless of having met them or not." Zerrus explained, resting her elbows on her knees and twiddling her fingers a bit. "But in order for you to understand what I'm talking about, I'll have to tell the story of the Heartseed."

 The sound of heavy footfalls brought her gaze up the steps to see a very agitated Edge at the top, tapping his foot. "hey boss, our little friend is back. you remember her, right?"

 "YOU MEAN THE HUMAN WHO DENIED BEING A MAGE AND THREATENED TO BREAK MY RIBS? OF COURSE I REMEMBER THEM." Edge growled, glaring at Zerrus with a heated stare.

 "Sorry about that, Edge. I just get really pissy when someone presses me too hard. Slamming my spine into a solid concrete wall is a good example." Zerrus commented, her eye sparking slightly as a warning. "Guess you should hear this too. Go ahead and sit, it's going to be a long story."

 Sans, Red and Edge sat down on the couch. Zerrus pulled up a chair and sat in front of them, settling down and attempting to get comfortable on the hard wood. "Before I begin, I guess I should say this; anything said in here needs to remain IN THIS ROOM. If anyone else in the Underground heard about my presence here or my powers, shit could REALLY go bad."

 "The legend of the Heartseed begins over 20,000 years ago, when the War of Councils began. Two factions consisted of two different beliefs, waged war over the dominion of the Sacred Grove, the land which Mt. Ebott resides on. One faction believed in the power of light, the sacred blessing gifted by the Archangel that watches over them. They were known as the Gleam."

 "zehan said she was a soldier of the gleam. she was just a religious nutjob?" Red remarked, crossing his arms and grimacing slightly.

 "based on what i heard, the gleam were a group of pure-hearted people who wanted to protect the planet from a great evil." Sans explained, nudging Red a bit.

 "Correct. The other faction believed in the power of control, domination, and even the darkest of magics; necromancy. Necromancy was banned throughout the Sacred Grove just before the war started. The Gleam felt it was wrong to dessicrate the remains of those put to rest only to be used as slaves, all free will removed and their minds blank. At first, the resistance against the ban was small, but then it grew exponentially. They worshipped the power of darkness, the great power gifted by the Overlord. They were known as the Gloam." Zerrus continued.

 "The two Councils fought for control of the Sacred Grove. The Gleam wishing to protect the natural order of the Realm; the Gloam wanting to take all control over the order of the Realm and manipulate it to be a better breeding ground for darkness, a suitable home for their Overlord. These two beliefs sparked a great catastrophe across the Free Realms."

 "In fear of what was to come, the Gleam sent as many survivors from the catastrophe to a cavern in the heart of the Sacred Grove. The cavern was nestled deep underground, safe from the magic backwash of the battle from the War of the Councils. Those unfortunate enough to be on the surface were mutated by the raw power, mangling their forms and melding them with parts of the earth around them. These inflicted beings were sent with other survivors, provided they hadn't become feral from the raw magic assaulting their very souls. These people were named as Changelings by some of the survivors in the caverns."

 "to think that the soul can be warped like that..." Sans mumbled under his breath, shaking his head.

 "IT IS CLEARLY A POWER TO BE FEARED." Edge commented, narrowing his eyes slightly and tensing his shoulders a bit. "CONTINUE."

 "Right." Zerrus responded. "The War waged for hundreds of years, until the day the icon of the Gleam and the patriarch of the Gloam stepped on the mortal plane. In an act of desperation, the Archangel used some of her powers to bestow life from an inanimate object. Specifically, a shimmering blue crystal nestled deep in the heart of the caverns. Inside this great crystal resided 7 champions, each one powered by the hearts of those around them."

 "Red - DETERMINATION, a soldier who never gave up regardless of whether the odds were with or against them. Orange - COURAGE, a fighter who charged into danger head-on, heedless of the risks, powered by the fears of the ones they wanted to protect. Yellow - JUSTICE, a noble knight whose judgement was based purely on the rights dictated before them, by the hearts of those they swore to protect. Green - KINDNESS, a healer who helped those hurt, either physically or even emotionally, regardless of their standpoint on the War or what side they supported. Cyan - PATIENCE, a simple person who sat next to those too scared to move, or were waiting for someone, even if they knew the reason was explained or undeniable. Blue - INTEGRITY, an archer who stuck to the code of arms, to never strike down out of spite. Purple - PERSERVERENCE, a swordsman who continued forward, despite any type of hinderance."

 "sounds an awful lot like the traits of souls." Red muttered.

 "It's no coincidence that you would think that. The concept of soul traits was based on these champions, born by the power of people's hopes and dreams. But, there was a problem. The Overlord used his powers to create a single champion from a blood red crystal; Black - DESPAIR, a relentless hunter built only to root out any who followed the Archangel and destroy them. No doubt that you two hoodie bros know who connects the most with that."

 "chara." both of the Sanses growled out.

 "The champions battled with as much power as they had to push back the Gloam's advance on the sanctuary. The fate of the people rest on their shoulders. Things were going well until the 7 champions of the Gleam met the champion of the Gloam. The final battle for the fate of the entire Grove rest on these 8 champions."

 "The battle waged for years, the champions of the Gleam slowly wittling away by the hands of the single champion of the Gloam. Hope was beginning to fade from those who could not fight, those who depended on the protection of the champions. It looked as though the Gleam would lose and the Sacred Grove would become a barren wasteland, overrun by darkness and despair."

 "In a last ditch effort, a single pixie emerged from amongst the crowd. Her name was Ayani. She encouraged those with her to never lose hope. To keep believing that the Free Realms would live on. That darkness would never be able to touch them so long as the light they held never waned."

 "The people rallied around her, grateful for her courage... her determination... her hope..."

 "When the final battle began, when the Archangel and the Overlord fought with all their strengths, a shattering sound followed by a blinding light shrouded the entire Grove. Everyone thought it was finally over. That the remaining champions of the Gleam would emerge from the battlefield with smiles on their faces. What greeted them was not what they were expecting."

 "The entire Grove was destroyed. Darkness had not crept across the land, yet there was no light. Just an empty shell that it used to be. What emerged from the field was only a single survivor; DETERMINATION, or who they named as Demina. Demina recounted the events of the battle, how the remaining champions fell in order to stop DESPAIR, or Desi."

 "COURAGE, Coare, fell when they threw themselves in front of the others to block the incoming attack that was targetted at the sanctuary. JUSTICE, Jisu, fought in honor of Coare's death, only to be slain when Desi summoned a contingency of Gloamlings to defend them. KINDNESS, Kisen, used the rest of their reserves trying to keep everyone else alive, but fell when they could not heal their own injuries when betrayed by one they saved. PATIENCE, Piteen, fell when they were crushed by a landslide caused by one of the armies. INTEGRITY, Itern, broke their code when they struck down an agent of the Gloam, who had brutally slaughtered their entire hometown."

 "just like zehan..." Sans mumbled under his breath.

 "And finally... PERSERVERENCE, or Perse, who died protecting Demina to the end, using their own body as a shield to allow Demina to land the killing blow on Desi. Demina fell into a deep sleep shortly after, no amount of Pixie Life magic could revive her. Ayani took that opportunity to keep the hopes and dreams of the others up as she looked over the wreckage that used to be their home."

 "The Archangel took what was left of Demina's power, along with the other champions, and infused them into a simple seed. She declared this to be known as the Heartseed; to be placed at the heart of the Sacred Grove and to stand as a symbol as their sacrifice. Those words cut through Ayani like a knife, causing her to cry as she planted the seed. Her tears fell onto the seed, a gentle warmth spreading out over the seed. Almost instantly, the tree began to sprout, her tears forming the waterfalls, rivers, and lakes that dot the Sacred Grove. The Great Tree in the center of Sanctuary is what sprouted from that seed."

 "Her tears were infused with Pixie Life magic, granting new life to the barren wastes that were the Grove. She stayed within the cavern until the day her life magic drained. On that day, the Archangel spoke once more. She said to everyone within the Grove that due to the sacrifices Ayani and the champions made, she officially dubbed them as Eternal Guardians, the protectors of the Sacred Grove. She also said that when the world needs another champion, the crystal within, what would from then on be known as the Memorial Caverns, would give birth to the new champion."

 "That's the legend... at least as far as I know. I'm no scholar." Zerrus sighed, dropping her gaze to the floor.

 "you explained it perfectly, zerrus." Sans complimented, Zerrus ducking a bit into her jacket.

 "WHY WOULD HUMANS AND PIXIES BE SO WILLING TO SACRIFICE THEMSELVES IF IT MENT THEY WOULD GAIN NOTHING." Edge questioned.

 "it wasn't about what they'd gain... but what they were protectin', boss." Red answered for her.

 "Sometimes... the thing you want to protect the most comes way before your own safety. That's what the moral of it all was." Zerrus mumbled.

 "IT STILL DOESN'T EXPLAIN WHY YOU ARE LIKE A MAGE. ARE YOU A PIXIE?" Edge asked, narrowing his eyes at her.

 "Due to something that happened a few years back, my very soul was changed. I USED to be a human, but thanks to the actions of a pixie named Geoffrey, it manipulated my soul's core. When my soul took one final jab, it altered my entire being. I became the first ever human-pixie hybrid. My bones are hollow like a pixie's, yet strong like a human's. I'm also much taller than a pixie by 2 feet, though my ears confuse some. That is why some people mistake me as a monster so easily... because I'm a mutation."

 "it wasn't your fault." Sans attempted to console.

 "YOU STILL HAVEN'T ANSWERED MY QUESTION... WHY DOES YOUR SOUL REPRESENT A MAGE?" Edge demanded.

 "The magic you are reading from me is Pixie Life magic. However, the Archangel clearly kept her word, saying that if the world needed another champion, the Memorial Caverns would birth another Guardian. The day my whole life was changed, I was at the Caverns with my friends. It was my birthday and everyone who attended did so because of my actions in protecting the Sacred Grove. Everything was going fine... until an unidentified object was seen hovering over the Great Tree."

 "Me and all of my friends were knocked unconscious, then we were taken aboard that strange object. I came to before any of my friends... but only to see an unusual Changeling hovering near me. They were holding a wierd tool, radiating a chilling magic and burning me at every touch. Looked like I woke up during the experiments they were performing on us."

 "I eventually fainted from the amount of pain I was in, then found myself in an strange containment cell. An A.I. kept referring to me as Subject E-417. Based on the records Sans and I found in the caverns of Merry Vale, it seems the culprit behind those insidious tests was hiding out there. At first, we thought Azula was behind it all but we soon found out that wasn't the case. Once I fix whatever the hell is going on around here, I'll be focused on finding the son of a bitch who wrecked my life."

 "damn, that sounds worse than what alphys would do to ya." Red chuckled.

 "Sounds to me that seeing your Alphys would be a needle in the ass compared to what I've been through already. Not saying I wanna see her at all given our current predicament."

 "red, have you noticed any strange disruptions lately?" Sans turned to face Red, his eyelights focused on him.

 "aside from zehan vanishin', i can't say fer sure. haven't really noticed anythin'." Red responded, shrugging slightly.

 "Edge? Anything from you?" Zerrus asked.

 "BESIDES YOUR UNEXPECTED ARRIVAL, NOTHING. WHAT ARE YOU EXPECTING TO HAVE HAPPEN?" Edge replied.

 "We're not sure... I just hope that whatever it turns out to be doesn't end up killing us."


	30. Reservations Breached

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zerrus engages in a mission to locate the unusual anomalies within the timelines.

  
 "Who'd have thought the damn breach was a freakin' pair of socks that Red didn't recognize?" Zerrus grumbled, holding the socks out as far from her as she could. "Damn thing smells terrible. How the hell can you sleep in a room that smells like ass?!"

 "don't tell me you don't have a trash tornado in yer room?" Red shrugged at her.

 "Worse I'd end up getting is a small mountain of clothes Dat and I end up piling up in our hamper." Zerrus cracked a portal in the temporal plane, then sent the sock through. She summoned a small orb, carressing it and waiting for a small shine. "What's next on the list, Soothing Sky?"

 "You aren't going to like it, Teknianu." Soothing Sky responded, the orb pulsing at her every syllable.

 "It won't matter if the whole damn time/space tethers are snapped. Where are we headed now?"

 "A universe codenamed Underlust."

 "Under... lust...?" Her face paled and her left eye twitched.

 "ooh... that doesn't sound good." Sans grimaced, turning at bit away from her to scratch his skull.

 "what's the big deal? so she's gotta go to some wierd place called underlust. what gives?" Red asked, waving his arms slightly at her dismay.

 "zerrus is a really reserved woman. she's married and hasn't even let her husband see her underwear before."

 "I swear to the Tree... if the fucking anamoly is NOT a fucking sock, I'm gonna be seriously PISSED OFF." Zerrus snarled, her eye flashing at the orb.

 "I am opening the portal now. Good luck, Teknianu." Soothing Sky spoke. The portal Zerrus had opened shifted colors, the original deep blue shade replaced by a vibrant pink. Growling under her breath, she stepped through the portal, dragging Sans along by his hoodie.

 Stepping into the snow once more, she turned and stared at her version of Sans. "Look Sans, I'll be counting on you to keep these lust driven freaks away from me." Zerrus snarled then huddled close to Sans, gripping his arm in a tight hold.

 Practically dragging him through the snow with her, she came up to the exact same sentry station she has now seen three times. What she wasn't expecting was for this universe's Sans to not be at his station. Now expecting for him to sneak up behind her, she kept her guard up and scanned the area.

 Feeling an unsettling tingle shoot up her back, she wheeled around to see the alternate Sans standing near the door to the Ruins. She leaned over and whispered to the original Sans, "Damn dude... didn't think you'd be a slut."

 "huh?" he mumbled, turning to look at Zerrus. She had a smug yet disgusted grin on her face as she eyed Underlust's Sans. He wore a black tank top that only reached just past his ribcage, a purple vest with teal fur lining the hem, black fingerless gloves, slick black leather leggings, and teal boots that reached up to his knees.

 Lust turned to look at Zerrus, just as she was staring at his outfit with a grimace. His grin hitched up, his eyelights shifted to purple hearts as he approached her. "Tch!" she grunted, planting her feet firmly in the snow and glared at him, her fingertips sparking in defense.

 "what brings you here, sweetcheeks?" Lust questioned in a sultry tone. He gently carressed her cheek, the burn mark nestled there sparkling to life at the light touch. Pulling his hand away, he eyed her more carefully. "ah. i see."

 "Yo. My eyes are up here, pervert." Zerrus grumbled, grabbing his jaw and forcing him to look her in her eyes. "Let's get one thing straight; if you know why I'm here, then keep yourself under control. Got it? I'm only here to repair the temporal breach, so no funny business." She shoved him back forcefully, knocking him away by a few feet.

 "all work and no play, sweetcheeks?"

 Her eyes drooped, then she turned to look back at Sans, a silent question of 'why am I dealing with this guy?' written on her face. The sound of snow crunching under someone's feet brought her gaze back to Lust, his face mere inches away from hers once again. On instinct, she summoned a wave of chains that lashed out at him. The chains wrapped tightly around his arms and legs, then pinned him into the snow. "When I said 'no funny business', I meant for you to keep your slutty ass a fair distance away from me!"

 "i'd listen to her, dude. she's not someone you wanna fight with. and this is coming from experience." Sans added, stepping up behind her and placing a firm hand on her shoulder, signalling to Lust that he was guarding her. "she isn't one you want to press. trust me."

 "Thanks for the words of wisdom there, boneboy. But I highly doubt it'll stop this walking lust cloud." Zerrus grumbled, the strength of her chains waning slightly. "Look here Lustyboy, I'll be wandering around the Underground in search of the temporal breach. I hate to admit this, but I'm going to need you to protect me during my stay here. However..." She released Lust, only to uncover her left eye and glare at him with her reticle pupil. Her two orbs hovered behind her, their reticles flashing almost violently and narrowing on him. "If you even THINK about comin' on to me, I won't hesitate to kick your boney ass!"

 "alright, sweetcheeks. how do ya want me to protect ya?" Lust calmly questioned, not seeming phased by the fact Zerrus had just threatened him.

 "Guh..." she grunted in disgust, her magic flickering off. "I REALLY hate havin' to say this, but given the situation I'm bound to find myself in, I have no choice. I need you to act as a sort of escort."

 "oh? and i thought you said that you would kick my ass if i came on to you. now you're coming on to me? cheeky aren't ya?"

 "Ugh! I walked right into that one... Listen up, nice and clear... when I say 'escort' I MEAN a bodyguard. Granted, my choice of words was rather terrible thanks to the subject of this universe, but don't think for even a MINUTE that I'm interested. I'm married after all."

 After her threats were exchanged, she was now sitting in the skeleton brothers' home. Her boots tapped nervously against the floor, hunched over and tapping her magic mark. Lust was standing at one corner of the room, conversing with Sans, the nature of their discussion unknown to her. Instead of prying into what they were talking about, she focused more on her thoughts.

 'How could I have been so blind? The reason Dat and I have these powers is linked up to that terrible day. The Memorial Caverns chose their new champions, probably due to the Archangel realizing that one person wouldn't be enough to stop whatever evil is growing. If only the Archangel would tell us what this evil is. It would certainly make our jobs a hell of a lot easier.'

 'And this wave of temporal breaches... all these breaks started when Zehanpuryu sacrificed herself. I can understand the breach in Underfell, but why have they spread here too? I understand that it's up to Dat and myself to fix the issue, but the question still stands; why? It also beckons another question; why was the temporal breach back in Underfell a pair of socks? Maybe Soothing Sky knows the answer. She's been hiding a lot from me...'

 A tap to her shoulder jarred her from her thoughts, her eyes locking on to Lust as he sat down next to her. "What do you want?" Zerrus grumbled, wiggling closer to the armrest.

 "classic there warned me about how you will react. said that you will bite if i try to flirt with ya. he didn't say anything about petnames though." Lust spoke, shooting a wink towards Zerrus as she huddled against the armrest of the couch. "so, what's your first task, sweetcheeks?"

 "Wiping that smug grin off your face if you try to get any closer to me." she growled. Lust slowly crept away from her, sitting on the other side of the couch and glanced at her. "Good. Now, I need to scour every inch of the Underground. I'll have to start from the Ruins and continue east. Tell me, do you know if any human comes down here?"

 When she turned to look back over to Lust, instead of seeing his eye flare up into that heartshaped purple flame, his sockets were blank. "you may not like this news, sweetcheeks. based on the rotation from the resets, the human that's gonna be here won't be friendly."

 "Meaning what? Each universe has different laws. The previous one we were in was 'Kill or Be Killed', so what exactly is THIS universe's law?"

 Sans tensed up in his corner, his face pale and his eyesockets blank. He stepped over to Zerrus, then bent down to where he could whisper to her. Somehow, she felt a warm breath ghost over her pointed ears. What she heard caused her to hastily glance back and forth between Sans and Lust, her eyes blown and her target pupil shrunk to a pinprick. She could then hear Lust chuckle quietly under his breath.

 "F-first off, how in the hell did you manage to BREATHE in my fuckin' ear?! You're a skeleton!" Zerrus stuttered, her hair standing up until it looked like she was electrocuted. "Second, if what you say is correct... then this human WILL be a challenge. I'll have to set aside my reservations in order to bait them into a trap."

 "hehe... bait..." Lust chuckled quietly.

 "Shut up..." Zerrus chastised, pushing herself off of the couch and strolling over towards a nearby window. She stared out into the snow, watching the ceiling starlight glistening on the white powder. "I won't get far in this place if I look like a vixen. I'll have to switch into something less conspicuous."

 "well babe, i can't help ya with that. in case you haven't noticed, we don't exact have the most modest of clothing down here."

 "prepare to be amazed, lust." Sans smirked, sticking his hands into his pockets and shutting his eyes.

 Taking a deep breath, she willed her magic to form, the magic mark on her cheek misting and her reticle shining brightly. Her eye caught magic fire, then she gripped her jacket. She threw her jacket off almost violently, tossing it over to Sans as a swarm of blue crystals materialized around her. The gems imploded towards her, encasing her within a large blue crystal. The gem exploded, her clothing replaced by her bodysuit. Landing on the ground with a metallic clank, she opened her eyes and smirked.

 "a form fitting suit. that's kinda sexy." Lust commented, scratching his chin with a boney finger.

 "Hrk-!" Zerrus wheezed slightly, her face flushing over at the compliment. Clearing her throat, she turned to face away from Lust.

 "ah damn, kid. you gotta work on that." Sans muttered, stepping closer to Zerrus and slinging her jacket over her shoulders. Lust went to ask Sans what was wrong when he held up a hand. "she gets flustered when complimented in any way. it's actually pretty cute how she puffs up."

 "That aside, this is my battle suit. The last time I fought with the kid, they were a homocidal maniac hellbent on killing everything. The spandex allows me to move freely, making it a hell of a lot easier to evade incoming attacks or other things. The metal platings help to reinforce my defenses. You can never be too careful with the kid."

 Holding her hand out, she focused her magic into materializing her sword, the blue soul energy flickering along the blade. She then willed her magic into summoning her familiars; Opi, Visi, and her soul wolf. Once they gathered around her, she nodded with a smile. Dismissing her magic, she turned to look at Lust. The look on his face was unreadable to her.

 "Enough ogling. We have a mission to focus on."


	31. Delving Into Memories

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Having to push her reservations aside long enough, Zerrus must continue her search for the temporal breach within the universe of Underlust.

 

 It had been many excrutiating hours since Zerrus had arrived at the entrance to the Underground, waiting for the child to fall. Lust had been restrained enough to guide her there, then left after she had threatened him once again. She sat on a random boulder, waiting patiently for the child to arrive in the Underground. Leaning back on both elbows, she looked up towards the ceiling of the cave she was in. The sound of leaves rustling the only thing breaking the unbearable silence that had been hovering around her.

 

 "Howdy! I'm Flowey! Flowey the flower!" greeted a familiar voice. Zerrus turned and glanced over at the small buttercup poking out of the dirt.

 

 "Beat it, Asriel. I don't have time to deal with you." Zerrus inexplicably said, completely oblivious to the fact she had addressed Flowey by his true name. Stealing a glance, she noted that Flowey's face had morphed into a rather sinister one. "Hey. Unless you want to have every single one of your petals torn off and served in a cup of tea, calm your tits. If not? Do me a favor and leave me alone, alright? I'm busy."

 

 "Busy doing WHAT? Sitting around and MOPING like an idiot?"

 

 Zerrus's eye flashed, her chains lashing out from behind her and wrapping around Flowey's stem. A deep scowl was drawn on her face, a low growl rumbling in her chest at the flower. "Listen up, cause I'm only going to say this ONCE; Fuck. Off. My reasons are my own. So if you got a problem with that, take it up with my ass cause it's the only thing that gives a crap in this hellhole."

 

 "Well aren't you a pleasant person to be around. FINE. Have it your way."

 

 Just like that, Flowey had left the chamber. Zerrus sighed, returning to her long wait in this universe's Frisk's arrival. Her long wait was rewarded when she spotted a child in a red sweater with pink stripes falling down. Spreading her stance, she shot up into the air, the wind whistling by her as she rocketed towards the falling child. Quickly grabbing the small child, she scaled down the chamber's walls and safely to the patch of flowers.

 

 The wary child looked up at Zerrus with terror in their big blue eyes, their red hair flowing in front of her eyes and tangling in her fingers.

 

 "It's alright. I'm not going to hurt you, okay?" Zerrus attempted to soothe. The child pushed out of her arms, quickly scuttling behind the boulder she was sitting on for so long. "Will you please tell me your name?"

 

 "Ch-Cherry..." she whispered, her voice wavering in fear. "My name's Cherry."

 

 "Cherry, huh?" She nodded hastily, still hiding behind the rock. "Well Cherry, I'm Zerrus. Like you, I found myself here. I've been down here long enough to know that it's not going to be easy to go through here." Zerrus slowly approached Cherry, kneeling down and extending her hand out towards the timid child. "I had a nagging feeling that someone would fall here. And I just can't allow myself to see someone so young travel through the Underground without a guardian."

 

 "Guardian?"

 

 "Mhm. I won't let anything bad happen to you, Cherry. I swear on my title."

 

 Zerrus gave Cherry a warm smile, her hand still held out to the young child. Cherry slowly crept out from behind the boulder and stepped closer to Zerrus. Taking her hand, Cherry latched onto Zerrus in a tight hug. Caught completely off guard, she wrapped her arms around her small trembing form. It was then that she realized that Cherry wasn't shaking because she was cold or afraid.

 

 She was crying.

 

 "What's wrong?" Zerrus whispered, Cherry clinging to her tighter.

 

 "You... you wouldn't understand even if I told you!" Cherry cried, pressing her face into Zerrus's chest as she cried even harder.

 

 "You'll be surprised, sweetie. Go on. Let it out."

 

 "No matter how many times I've tried to stop it... no matter how many times I fought back... the darkness... the loneliness... they-!" Cherry burst out crying hysterically. "The thing that scared the most was a big skeleton. His eyes... the purple...!"

 

 'Purple...? That son of a bitch!'

 

 "You... you're the only one who hasn't done anything to hurt me so far. I... I don't want to be a bother, but..." Cherry pulled back enough to look at Zerrus's face, her eyes teary. "...will you be my mom?"

 

 'Mom?'

 

 "You...want me to be your mom?"

 

 "Mhm."

 

 "I... I've never been a mom before..." Zerrus mused quietly under her breath, pulling Cherry closer to her. "Alright Cherry... I'll be your mom."

 

 After guiding Cherry along through the ruins, Zerrus came up on the door that lead to the rest of the Underground. This universe's Toriel was standing behind them, wringing her hands together nervously. "Please be careful." she called out as Zerrus pushed the door open.

 

 "Sweetie?" Zerrus addressed Cherry, bending down to her eye level.

 

 "Yes, momma?" she answered, looking up at Zerrus with big eyes.

 

 "It's cold outside this door. Here." She shimmied off her jacket and draped it around Cherry. "I know it's a little big on you, but you can't risk getting sick."

 

 "What about you, momma? Won't you get cold?"

 

 "No, sweetie. I'll be alright. Just try not to trip over it, okay?" Cherry nodded enthusiastically, Zerrus standing up and turning towards the last door out of the ruins. Pushing it open, she was met with the sheering wind ripping through her. Squinting through the fog of Snowdin's forest, she held Cherry's hand tighter. As they stepped through the snow and towards the gate, Zerrus bent down in front of Cherry. "Sweetheart, stay close to me."

 

 Stepping through the gate and to the sentry station, she shot Lust a digusted look. "sup, babe?" he calmly greeted, despite Zerrus practically melting his skull with her glare.

 

 "Don't you 'sup' me! Now... you'll speak really FUCKING CLEAR! GOT IT?!" Zerrus growled, dragging Lust by his vest and out of his sentry station. "Cherry here says that you've hurt her! WHAT DID YOU DO?!"

 

 "cherry?" Lust turned his gaze towards Cherry, her big blue eyes blown and her little hands gripping on to Zerrus's hip tightly. "i've never seen this kid before."

 

 "You better not be fucking lying..." she threatened, her grip tightening on his vest.

 

 "cross my soul."

 

 Turning back to face Cherry, Zerrus felt a familair sting in her chest. Falling to her knees and clutching her chest tightly, she felt the world crash around her. "zerrus!" shouted a similar voice. As she turned to look towards the direction Sans's voice came from, she saw Cherry's body levitate slightly off the ground, a blue aura surrounding her.

 

 "Cherry!" Zerrus called out, attempting to reach towards her. "Sans, what the hell are you doing?!"

 

 "the kid's blinded ya. can't you see that?"

 

 "Let her go!"

 

 "not happenin'. she's the breach we've been looking for."

 

 "I said... let go... of HER!" Zerrus's magic fire burst forth, pushing away the invisible force holding her down and lunging at Sans, her blade raised. Slashing her blade downwards and generating a shockwave of soul energy, she used that as a distraction to grab Cherry from his hold. "What the hell has gotten into you? I would understand attacking Chara, but Cherry isn't them! Couldn't you have confirmed that with me BEFORE turning into a psychopath?!"

 

 "if she's not an anomaly, then what is she?"

 

 Glaring deeply at Sans, Zerrus locked eyes with him; her eyes blazing with magic and his blank. "Do a soul scour on me. Then you'll see."

 

 "you do know what that means... right?" his voice cracked.

 

 "I don't care anymore. Just DO IT!"

 

 Just as she blurted those three words; Sans pounced on her, grabbing her wrists and binding them with magic as he teleported himself, Zerrus and Cherry to the shed in Snowdin. Cherry was huddled in a corner, as far from Sans as she could be, and watched in fear as he pulled Zerrus's soul free from the confines of her chest. Her blue and red wispy soul emerged, trembling slightly as it was practically forced from its shell. Sans grabbed it, then ran a single finger along the surface of the small heart.

 

 "don't say i didn't warn ya." he mumbled as he almost clawed at her soul.

 

 Writhing on the floor from the sensation of being scoured by a brilly sponge, she gasped and sputtered at the unwelcome burning pain that trickled all over her. That's when she felt like her very wall of defense was shattered, and everything that made her HER was revealed to him.

 

 The first memory that made her who she is played before them.

 

 "Dad?" a younger version of Zerrus called out, stepping into view before Sans and a present version of herself, rubbing her eyes and yawning.

 

 "Yeah, Zer-bear?" responded a middle-aged man in a red polo shirt and khakis as he turned to face his daughter. "What's up, babygirl?"

 

 "What are you working on?"

 

 "Something special. Just for you, Zer-bear."

 

 The memory faded and another trickled in, the background was that of a hospital waiting room. Zerrus was sitting on a table and calmly watching the physician pace by her.

 

 "I'm afraid Zerrus is experiencing a major case of magic defficiency. With this much magic in her systems, she won't last very long unless treated." explained the physician as he approached Zerrus's father with a solemn look.

 

 "How can we help her?" he asked, his face determined and crestfallen at the same time.

 

 "The only course of action would be to go in through a neural surgerical procedure and jumpstarting her magic production hormones. But... it is a highly experimental treatment..."

 

 "I don't care what the risks are... I want to feel better." the younger version of Zerrus mumbled, looking up from the floor and at the doctor. Her eyes were dark and her skin was pale, her hair all but gone.

 

 Another memory dribbled in, this time with a beautiful view of flowers the size of trees and a large rainbow colored pillar.

 

 "I don't understand, Zerrus." spoke a familiar green haired man, his knees tucked slightly towards his chest. "Humans and Pixies have gotten along so well all these millenia... then we show up and suddenly we're abominations."

 

 "They are afraid of the unknown, Dat. We'll simply be individualized pariah unless we do something about it." A more present time Zerrus spoke, pushing herself to her feet and dusting off her pants. "I'm tired of standing around and not being able to do anything. I'm tired of being on the sidelines. I'm tired of being alone. Which is why I want to ask you this: will you join me in the bonds of matrimony, to preserve ourselves for the future ahead?"

 

 "Heh. Aren't I supposed to be the one to ask YOU that?"

 

 Another memory flooded in.

 

 "Miss Zerrus!" called out a male voice, out of breath and closing in on her position as she walked down a dirt path. As an older version of her turned to face him, she revealed a set of brighter red eyes without the reticle pupil, and her hair was barely that of a burr.

 

 "Is there a problem, courier?" she addressed, her hands on her sword hilt. The courier coughed roughly, then handed her a small box. Her eyes immediately dimmed and her face flattened, her hands shaking as she reached for the box. "When did it happen?"

 

 "A few hours ago, ma'am. Was it someone you knew?"

 

 "My father..." she turned to leave the courier, tossing a pouch towards him and gripping her sword hilt tighter. "Thank you..."

 

 The previous memory faded, and a new one dripped in place. The lights of the memory were fuzzy, and the textiles of the flooring were metallic.

 

 A very pissed off looking Zerrus stepped into view, wearing a blood red bodysuit with teal lights dotting the wrists, shoulder joints, hip joints, and ankles. A bandage was placed over her left eye, her hair slightly longer and her skin a bit darker. She slid over a panel and crouched, only to be blasted out of her hiding spot and in front of another person. This individual wore a similar bodysuit, only black, and had maroon hair that were tied off into a pair of pigtails that tapered over her shoulders.

 

 "Honestly Zerrus, did you really think you could fight back against an army?" taunted the woman as she stepped closer to her. "You've gotten so cocky ever since you took down my little busboy."

 

 "Why, Azula? Why do you want to destroy the Free Realms?!" Zerrus barked out, struggling to stand up, only to have Azula raise a battleaxe made of pure energy.

 

 "Why else? Domination."

 

 Just at that, the memories faded and their vision was greeted with the bland wood of the shack.

 

 "i... i don't understand. what's this got to do with the kid?" Sans questioned, returning Zerrus's soul to her chest, her breathing ragged and hiccupy. He turned to look at Cherry, who had inched closer to Zerrus. Her red hair had fallen in front of her face, her blue eyes blank and teary. On a whim, he checked Cherry's stats.

 

 CHERRITANA TEKNIANU LV 1   HP |   | 174/174

 

 *Check

 

 ATK 7  DEF  5  EXP 0

 

 *A child born from the bond of two Guardians.

 

 "by the stars... she's your daughter." he mused aloud.

 

 "Momma?" Cherry called out meekly. Sitting up, Zerrus gave Cherry a warm yet weak smile and ushered for her to come closer.

 

 "It's okay, sweetie... Sans knows now. He won't hurt you." Zerrus comforted, her voice weak and cracking. Wrapping her arms around her child, she smiled, tears of happiness rolling down her cheeks. "I won't leave you, Cherry. I'll NEVER leave you."

 

 "What did he mean... when he said I'm your daughter?"

 

 Summoning her soul free once more, Zerrus used some of her magic to call out Cherry's soul. The tiny soul bobbed in front of her chest, wisps of red and purple dancing off the surface of her soul. "Only my child could have a soul like this. See?" She held up her soul next to Cherry's, the blue and red wisps intermingling with the purple and red ones from the smaller soul. "This is proof that you are my daughter."


	32. Swapping Roles

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After accepting her new role as a mother, Zerrus must already make a tough decision regarding her daughter.

  
 "I really don't think this is a smart idea, Teknianu." Soothing Sky lectured, tapping her foot and grabbing Zerrus's shoulder and stopping her movements.

 "Look, I'm glad that we found the source of the breach in Underlust, but without Cherry by my side, I never would have found it." Zerrus snapped, brushing Soothing Sky's hand off and adjusting her shirt collar. She was wearing a dark brown leather jacket, a black athletic t-shirt, a pair of tattered black jeans and her work boots. Zerrus had put on a single black earring stud on her right ear.

 "Do you really want to endanger your daughter? You are aware of the nature of the next universe you are headed to, correct?"

 "Yes, I'm very well aware. But if I don't take her with me, HAM may target her. News of her birth has already spread across the grove." Brushing past her, Zerrus approached the information panel latched onto her universal transportation device. "I've already instructed Sans to assist Dat and Kro in their endeavor to stop them. I'm going in with only Cherry."

 "Are you even listening to me? You are endangering the life of your newborn child!"

 "Cherry never leaves my side. And odds of me being incapacitated long enough for my emergency magic reactors to engage are highly unlikely." Cherry stepped into the workshop, her red hair tapering in front of her eyes. "Ah geez. Cherry sweetie?"

 "Yes momma?" she chirped, stepping closer to Zerrus. She wore a black vest, a cherry blossom pink long sleeved shirt that reached to her middle finger, the symbol on Zerrus's cheek sewn to the fabric, a matching black skirt, and a matching pair of cherry blossom pink flats.

 "Let's get those bangs out of your eyes." Summoning a small orb of magic, she focused it into creating a matching clip to her necklace. The resulting product made her smile. It was a red bauble with a blue targetting reticle in the center. Stepping over and clipping some of her bangs over, she watched as Cherry smiled brightly. "Are you ready to go, sweetheart?"

 "Uh huh!"

 "Alright. Take my hand. We're going to blink again, okay?"

 Blinking back into existence, Zerrus found herself and Cherry standing in the living room of the Fell brothers. "doll? what'cha doin' here?" Red blunk a few times, caught off guard by her sudden appearance. His eyelights fell onto Cherry, one eyelight immediately being replaced by a bright red iris. "who's this?"

 "This is Cherry, my daughter." Zerrus introduced, stepping up behind Cherry and placing a protective hand on her shoulder. "In my universe, there is an anti-monster society known as Humanity Against Monsters. News of her arrival spread fast, and now they want her. We had nowhere else we can hide her, so this was the only option. Before you say anything, I'm VERY well aware of the nature of your universe. Bear in mind, you  nearly killed me when I first arrived. Trust me... I had to think about it before even enacting this plan."

 "If what you're saying is true Momma, those bad guys can't find me here... right?" Cherry asked, looking up at Zerrus with her big blue eyes.

 "They shouldn't be able to, sweetie." she smiled down at her. Zerrus brought her gaze back to Red. "I need a favor from you guys: can you watch over Cherry until it's safe?"

 A stagnant air circled around them. Silence thickening the very air as she awaited his answer. Then... a disturbing chuckle rumbled in his chest.

 "pretty bold there, doll. after the stunt ya pulled with the barrier, ya really think we're just gonna buddy up with ya that easy? did ya really forget what the law is here?" Red cackled, his eye flashing violently.

 "Hey. Calm yourself before I have to get violent." Zerrus calmly threatened, her eye flashing in return. Her grip on Cherry's arm tightened slightly, Cherry shuffling a bit behind Zerrus to get as far from Red as possible. "I placed a seal on the barrier. Once I use the incantation to disperse the seal, the barrier will be destroyed. I can't disperse that seal until all other alternate tangents have the same seal placed. With the remaining breaches still left untouched, I could risk a catastrophic break of the time-space continuum by destroying all barriers in one moment. Whatever is causing these breaches, it's not smart to let it loose. I have my fears as to what it is though..."

 "you haven't shown fear before... why be scared now, doll?" Red almost challenged, stepping closer to her.

 "I don't get scared that easily. Facing a dangerous magic and being ripped apart from the inside out can do that." She bluntly stated, calling out a fragment of her memories, shaped like a chainlink, and tossing it to Red. "Look at it or don't. I don't give a damn anymore. Just note that regardless of what you think of me after what you see, I am entrusting you with Cherry. Cross me..." She narrowed her eyes, her left eye sparking slightly as a vague warning.

 Stepping back, he eyed the chainlink closely, noting the magic sparks that radiated off its surface. Cherry stepped closer to Zerrus, tugging on her jacket slightly. "Momma...?" she meekly called out, shrinking down a bit as Red's gaze immediately shifted to her. "Why are you leaving me here? You promised you wouldn't leave me."

 "I know, sweetie... But this is one of those times where coming with me isn't safe. I'm doing this to protect you. Where I'm going... I may have to do some things I'm going to regret... and I don't want you to see that." Zerrus ducked her head slightly, her red eyes locking onto Cherry's blue ones. "Uncle Red here will watch over you... keep you safe. His brother, Uncle Edge, might be a bit harder to get used to... but he's not that bad."

 "don't let boss catch ya sayin' that, doll." Red remarked, dragging her attention back to his slouched behavior. "i'll watch over her. but ya better come back. i ain't goin' to be her full-time babysitter."

 "I'm not a baby!" Cherry yelped, glaring at Red slightly with her face puffed up.

 Try her hardest not to laugh at her outburst, Zerrus fake-coughed into her hand and smirked slightly. Looking back over to Red, she noted that he had belted out into a full-blown laughing fit from Cherry's declaration. Patting her shoulder, Zerrus led her towards Red who quickly took her place and pat her back sligthly. "don't worry, squirt. i don't make promises, but i'll make one for you and yer mommy. i won't let anyone hurt ya while mommy is away."

 "Thanks, Red." Zerrus nodded, stepping outside of the house while waving goodbye to Cherry. She began her long trek back to the sentry station of Snowdin, where no one would question the source of the magic.

 Cracking open a portal, she went to step through when she felt that all-too-familiar tingle shoot up her spine. Wheeling around, she scanned the nearby area in search of the source of the tingle. When she found nothing, she jumped into the portal. She stepped out into a different universe, the air around her felt lighter than usual, which confused her. When her eyes locked onto the sentry station that was a short distance away, she immediately started walking towards it.

 As she approached the gate, she awaited this universe's Sans to approach her. "H U M A N..." belted out a nasally voice. "D O N 'T  Y O U  K N O W  H O W  T O  G R E E T  A  N E W  P A L?"

 Instantly turning around, she went to grab for his hand but instead found herself stomach-level with a tall skeleton. Looking up to his eyesockets, her eyes widened and her pupil retracted. "Holy..." she muttered, her voice all but lost at the unusual sight before her. Instead of being met with an alternate Sans at the sentry station, she was met with an alternate Papyrus. This Papyrus was the exact opposite of the Papyrus she knows so well. He was wearing an orange hoodie, black shorts, and orange sneakers. Hanging from his jaw was a cigarette, the smell of the cigarette smoke wafting around the air around them.

 "got ya all speechless, eh honey?" he almost whispered.

 "Damn right I'm speechless! I wasn't expecting anything like THIS." Zerrus retorted, stepping back slightly to look up at him. "Anyways... my name's Zerrus. But some people call me Tech."

 "tech, huh? you some sort of technician then?"

 "Guess that's the obvious way to put it." Zerrus chuckled under her breath. She turned and looked toward the direction that, what she would assume to be Sans, to arrive. Her usual tingling sensation returned, tickling up her spine. "Someone wouldn't happen to be heading this way... would they?"

 "yeah, my brother sans. why don't you hide behind my sentry station?"

 "No arguments from me!" Quickly diving under the station, Zerrus wiggled in her hiding place to find a small crack in the wood. The crack was just large enough for her to look out of without drawing attention to herself. She watched as a blue armor clad skeleton came marching out and ran towards Swap's Papyrus.

 "sup, bro?"

 "DO NOT 'SUP' ME, PAPY! YOU HAVE NOT RECALIBRATED YOUR PUZZLES YET! IT HAS BEEN EIGHT DAYS! WHAT ARE YOU EVEN DOING OUT HERE?" Swap's Sans belted out.

 "just chillin' at my station. found somethin' cool over there. maybe you should check it out."

 'Oh, don't you DARE!' Zerrus angrily thought, fighting against her magic from flaring and blowing her cover.

 The conversation dredged on, the scenario just as similar to the first time she fell into the Underground. When this Sans left, she crawled out from under the station and pat the snow off of her butt. Some of the snow had melted to her clothing, making the fabric really uncomfortable to wear and move around in. "So, Paps... that was your brother, huh?" Zerrus calmly spoke, adjusting her coat and attempting to peel off some of the frigid fabric from her skin.

 "yeah. he's pretty cool, huh?" he smiled, his gaze not leaving the direction Swap Sans had trotted off to.

 "He wants to be in the Royal Guard... Does he know just how taxing it can be to be within the ranks of the most prestigious military?"

 "W H A T  D O  Y O U  K N O W  A B O U T  T H E  R O Y A L  G U A R D?" Paps eyelight darkened, his left eye sparking to life with a fiery orange flame leaking out.

 "Calm down there! I don't want to instigate a fight! I'm actually part of the Royal Guard on the surface." He took a single step towards her, causing her to throw up her arms in surrender. "Up on the surface, there's a collection of soldiers selected by Queen Valerian; the pixie queen chosen by the Heartseed to rule the Sacred Grove. Being royalty, Queen Valerian is targeted by assassins of all types. I was enlisted as a member of the Royal Guard, and I know just how exhausting the position can be! Not just physically, but mentally as well!"

 His eyelights returned to normal, his stance easing and allowing her to return to a more relaxed position. "sorry there, kiddo. can't be too careful with you humans."

 "Hate to burst your bubble there Paps, but I'm not actually a human. But tell ya what..." His eyelights flickered back to her eyes, focused and heated. "-I'll play along. Your brother will be happy. Isn't that what you want? For him to be happy?"

 "what would you know about that?" he all but growled at her.

 "Your eyes. Your eyes give everything away, Paps."


	33. Broken

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After being sent to Underswap, Zerrus watches and studies each nook and cranny in search of the next temporal breach.

 

 Stepping into a wave of warmth brought by the comfort of the house, Zerrus stepped inside and kicked the snow off of her boots on the landing. "I appreciate you letting me stay here." Zerrus thanked, shrugging off her coat and stretching. "You guys really don't have to do this."

 

 "NONSENSE! PAPY TOLD ME THAT YOU ARE ACTUALLY VERY FRIENDLY! I WAS ALWAYS TOLD THAT HUMANS ARE ACTUALLY PRETTY MEAN." Blue, Underswap's Sans, spoke cheerfully.

 

 "You wouldn't be far from the truth on that, Blue. I've known quite a few bad humans in my life; and this is coming from a person who doesn't tend to judge that easily." She paced uneasily towards the couch, leaning against the side and crossing her arms over her chest. "At any rate, I'm still grateful for you letting me stay here until I'm finished with my business."

 

 "YOU NEVER DID TELL US WHAT YOUR BUSINESS IS, MISS ZERRUS."

 

 "As much as I'd love to grace you with the details, it's classified. My lips are sealed there, Blue."

 

 "classified, huh?" Paps remarked, his eyelights almost burning into the back of her head. "just how classified is it?"

 

 "Again; I'd love to tell you, but I can't. The consequences are too great." Zerrus spoke without even a hint of fear in her voice. "All I can tell you is that my priority is to reach the barrier. Alive in the most preferable status." Her stomach decided to growl loudly, causing her to place a hand on her belly and grimace slightly. "Can't embark on an empty stomach, now can I?"

 

 "OH! I CAN MAKE MY FAMOUS 'FRIENDSHIP TACOS'! IN HONOR OF OUR FRIENDSHIP WITH YOU!" Blue practically squealed, rushing off into the kitchen and immediately causing a loud chorus of pots and pans clanging against each other.

 

 "I wouldn't say no to some tacos..." she mumbled under her breath. She almost solemnly looked towards the opposite corner of the room, a small flicker of red and purple smoke swirling near the staircase. "Please be safe..."

 

 "who?" Paps snapped her out of her thoughts. Choosing to ignore him, she instead chose to fiddle with her U.C.D. (Universal Communication Device) in hopes of reaching Cherry. Paps snatched her UCD and looked at the display. "you trying to call someone? cause if you are, there's no point. we have a secured network down here that can't reach the surface."

 

 "I can bet you that if I reroute my connection through the Undernet, I should be able to call them." She barked out, snatching her phone from his boney grip and opening the interface. "It's a simple system override I can initiate from here." 

 

 "who are you trying to call? you wouldn't have fallen down here if you knew the risk of not being able to come back." Her eyes darkened almost immediately, her temper rising dangerously and caused her mark to faintly glow. "or are you just trying to trick me... frisk?"

 

 "What are you talking about?" Paps lunged forward, wrapping his large hand around her throat and hoisting her off her feet. Gagging slightly and bringing her hands up to his, Zerrus watched in apathy as he glared at her. She didn't even care anymore. She knew that if he DID kill her, her determination would allow her to come back.

 

 "why the long face? finally giving up, you dirty brother killer...?"

 

 "Why..." she choked out, her vision blurring quickly. "Why do I bother trying anymore...?"

 

 Paps abruptly let her go, her butt landing hard on the floor and knocking whatever air was left in her lungs out of her. "trying to guilt trip me? not gonna work, you psychopath."

 

 "Heh... Haha... HAHAHAHAHAHA!" Zerrus burst out laughing hysterically, tears running down her cheeks as her magic suddenly flared. Gripping her head tightly and shaking it swiftly, she tried as hard as she could to contain her rampaging magic. "F-First Geoffrey... then Azula... n-now this?! Hah! HAHAHA! H-how much more can I take be-before I go insane?! Th-that is to say that I haven't ALREADY lost it!"

 

 "what the-" Paps hesitantly went to step closer to her when a small soul burst pushed him away. Stepping back from her, he connected the dots as to what she had just done. Recognizing it as a form of soul magic, he stuttered as he processed it. "how can a human possibly know how to do that?"

 

 Suddenly, her hysterical crying stopped. Her entire body shaking and her magic flowing off of her like water. "This... this has been their plan all along... t-to make me break..." Looking around her, she noticed that Paps was staring at her with a mixture of emotions scrolled on his face. "S-sorry you had to see that."

 

 "what has been whose plan?" he spoke in a deadpan tone.

 

 "The Gloam... it's all starting to come together now..." Attempting to push herself to her feet, she immediately fell back down onto the floor. "Could you help me up, please?"

 

 Just as Paps went to approach her, multiple blue threads wound around her and sucked her into seemingly nothing. Rushing over to see where she had gone to, his eyes went dark. "THE TACOS ARE READ- HEY... WHERE'D THE HUMAN GO?" Blue started, his happy tone dropping to a rather disappointed one.

 

 Blinking away a blinding brightness, Zerrus opened her eyes to see nothing but white all around her. She went to move forward, only to have her movements restricted. Looking towards her arms and legs, Zerrus noticed an alarming amount of blue colored threads tied tightly around them. Inspecting further, she noted that the threads also criss-crossed around her torso and some were dangled. "Why doesn't this surprise me much...?" she mumbled. Appearing in front of her was a rather familiar and unusual stocky skeleton. His bones were black, the empty space where his eyesockets would be were a deep red, his iris was a similar blue to her magic. Error signs danced around him, some parts of his body flickered in and out. "Can I help you?"

 

 "AwFuLlY cOcKy ThErE. dOn'T yOu EvEn KnOw WhO i Am?" his voice warbled.

 

 "How can I not know who you are? You're a Sans." The blue threads around her torso tightened immensely, her breath catching and her vision blurring for a moment. When she reopened her eyes she saw multiple threads spread out from the palm of this Sans's hand.

 

 "NaMe'S ErRoR... bUt FoR yOu? YoU cAn CaLl Me MaStEr." he chuckled darkly.

 

 "Like hell I am!" Zerrus snapped a few of the threads, managing to free her swordarm and calling forth her weapon. Swinging her blade downward, she sliced through a few more threads and bounded towards Error at breakneck speed. She watched as more threads rushed towards her, then kicked off into a backflip. Bringing her blade towards the new threads, she felt her sword lock into place. "What the hell?!"

 

 Her blade shattered into many pieices, her eyes widening in horror she brought her frightened gaze back up to Error. His grin widened further as more threads looped around her soul, pulling it free from her chest and towards him. "SuCh An InTeReStInG sOuL... i'Ll JuSt HoLd OnTo ThIs FrOm NoW oN."

 

 "N-No!" Just as she shouted her feelings, Error sucked her soul into his chest, the threads wound tightly around it. Her mind shrouded in a thick haze, her vision blurred to only a pinprick. "What is this...? Is this... some sort of pacification...?" A shrill sound rang through her ears and caused her to hunch over, clutching her head tightly and gritting her teeth.

 

 "StIlL nOt DeAd? YoU cErTaInLy ArE mOrE dUrAbLe ThAn YoU lOoK." Error chuckled, bending down to grab a fistful of her hair and force her to look at him. "nOw... LeT's TrY tHiS aGaIn... CaLl. Me. MaStEr."

 

 "Piss off!"

 

 "TsK. tSk. TsK. WrOnG aNsWeR."

 

 The threads wound around her soul constricted, cutting off her breath and nearly causing her to scream bloody murder. Biting back the scream, she instead glared darkly at him.

 

"D-Do your worst! I WON'T give in! Break my bones! Bash my head in! I don't care! I will NEVER bow to you!"

 

 "Oh BoY... tHiS iS gOnNa Be A tOuGh OnE tO bReAk..." Error mumbled under his breath, bringing his gaze back to her determined one. "JuSt MeAnS mOrE fUn FoR mE."

 

 'I can't let him break me. I have to stay determined. For Dat. For the Free Realms.'

 

 'For Cheritana...'


End file.
